Quercus robur

[Jock]

Can anyone help?.........Got a project ...a large common oak, approx 15m crown spread, 20m in height, a couple of (cavities 12"diam) 4m DBH, Look's healthy, no fruiting bodies, but I do notice lots of epicormac growth on the main limbs? Guys i've spent 6 hours in the library and came up with nothing!! The lecturer assures me there is a problem here, but i'll be honest....I dont know what it is, any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, Jock.

 

[John Paul Sanborn]

Do you have decline or dieback of the tips?

Is the sprouting even throughout the crown or is it more transparent in the upper reaches?

Could be defensive dieback from soil compaction or something like that. Roots cannot supply the branch ends so the tree shoots out a lot of low branch sprouts.

I don't see a whole lot of Q. robur that is not som cool cv. like 'Fastigiata' so I do not know if free grown spcimines can get messy in that respect.

If the canopy looks healthy and the sprouting is relatively even throughout, then I would lean towards a predisposition in this tree to behave this way. Maybe you could get a cv. named after you Q. robur 'Denisfolia Jock'