Joan Lionetti Oak
Quercus virginiana x fusiformis
Family: Fagaceae
CHARACTERISTICS
This beautiful evergreen oak is praised for its fast growth, straight trunk and symmetrical canopy. Its superior form will provide any landscape with dense shade all year long. Dependably grows 20-30’ tall and wide, initially growing fairly upright. Leaves are fuzzy on the underside and are typically not lobed except on young plants or suckers. Inconspicuous greenish flowers called catkins are borne in the spring and are followed by elongated acorns.
The ‘Joan Lionetti’ cultivar is very similar in appearance to, but smaller and hardier than, Virginia live oak (Quercus virginiana). It was developed by Civano Nursery in Tucson and was named after the founder of Trees for Tucson
LANDSCAPE USE
Medium-sized shade tree, street tree.
GROWING CONDITIONS
AN EXPLANAITION OF TERMS USED
SUN full sun
WATER moderate water
SOIL provide good drainage, amendment
HARDINESS hardy to 0°F
BASIN middle
CONTAINER does ok in container but may not reach full size
NUTRITION moderate
MAINTENANCE very little
ECOLOGY
Flowers in spring with inconspicuous, wind-pollinated flowers. Acorns ripen in fall. Oaks are wildlife keystone species hosting a mind-boggling number of insects. This brings in a vast array of substrate-insectivorous birds (birds that spend their time on these trees eating the insects). The acorns are important food for many birds and mammals (and some species eaten by people). The trees also provide important habitat for many birds and mammals. Almost all the oaks host a multitude of moths and butterflies including the following species:
Mexican-M Hairstreak (Parrhasius moctezuma)
Arizona Sister (Adelpha eulalia)
Short-tailed Skipper (Zestusa dorus)
Arizona Dull Firetip (Apyrrothrix araxes ssp. arizonae)
Burgess’s Sleepy Duskywing (Erynnis brizo ssp. burgessi)
Clitus Duskywing (Erynnis juvenalis ssp. clitus)
Meridian duskywing (Erynnis meridianus ssp. meridianus)
Scudder's Duskywing (Erynnis scudderi)
Mournful Duskywing (Erynnis tristis)
Oaks also host a diversity of insects that cause growths called “galls”. Galls are protective nests for the larvae of various insects (mostly tiny stingless wasps) to develop protected from pests. The have a diversity of shapes from giant ball-like growths, to small growths, on leaves or young stems. These galls do not harm healthy trees. Emory oaks that grow in riparian zones and get really tall are a favorite nesting site for owls and other raptors.
Oaks attract numerous other insects which, in turn, attracts canopy-gleaning birds.
ETHNOBOTANY
This plant doesn’t have a long, established history with people outside of landscape use.
NATURAL DISTRIBUTION
Not naturally occurring but parents of this hybrid are native to Texas and Mexico, and natural hybrids like this are often found in the wild.
TAXONOMY AND NAME
This plant is in the family Fagaceae, the beech family. There are 627 accepted species in the genus Quercus widely distributed in the northern hemisphere.
The genus "Quercus" is from Latin, meaning "oak". The species name, virginiana, references the state of Virginia, where this tree can be found, while the other species in the hybrid “fusiformis” refers to the spindle-shape of the acorn.