Lacey Oak
Botanical Name: Quercus laceyi (glaucoides)
Family: Fagaceae (Beech Family)
Common Names: Lacey Oak, Smokey Oak, Canyon Oak, Rock Oak, Blue Oak
Habit: Beautiful, drought tolerant, medium size deciduous shade tree. Height 25 to 35 feet, spread 15 to 20 feet, final spacing 15 to 20 feet. Lacey oak is a beautiful small to medium tree with blue-green mature foliage, peach colored new growth and similar fall color. Bark: Light gray to dark brown, flaky to deeply fissured. Foliage: New spring growth is each or light reddish in color. Mature leaves are leathery, dusky blue to blue-gray to grayish green. Fall color ranges from pink or peach to gold. The new growth in the spring is a similar color and a very pleasant feature. Flowers and Fruit: Separate male and female catkins in the early spring. Brown acorns are in clusters of 2 or 3. Grows in South Central Texas to the Trans Pecos in thin alkaline or limestone rocky soils up into the Chisos Mountains of Big Bend National Park. Adapted to a wide range of soils throughout the South in zones 7 - 8.
Lacey oak flowers
Culture: Easy to grow and adapts to many soil from sand to heavy clays. Can be found growing natively in the white limestone rocky soils so this is an excellent choice for the black and white soils of a large portion of Texas and other states. It is drought tolerant and needs little fertilizer.
Problems: Scarcity in the garden center and landscape industry but is becoming more available. It would not be able to stand wet soil continuously.
Howard has a Lacey Oak that needed attention—galls indicated the tree was in stress. This video shows the process to solve the problem of a tree too deep in the ground.
Propagation: All oaks are grown from seed - as soon as they are released from the trees in the fall. See ACORN PLANTING GENERAL.
Notes: Leaves are quite small in comparison to most other oaks. Lacey oak is a trouble free tree that should be used much more in the landscape. It is an excellent size for residential gardens.
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