Turkey Oak (Quercus cerris)

Turkey Oak - Dulwich Park

This is one of the ‘great trees of London’ so called by the charity Trees for Cities. The Turkey Oak in the photograph is in Dulwich Park and listed on the Trees for Cities website as one to visit. There are about 500 species of Oak in the Northern Hemisphere although there are far less than that in Britain. The Turkey oak was reintroduced to Britain in 1735, it’s deciduous and broadly conical. It harbors gall wasp larvae, which is bad for British Oak but provides a good early source of food for birds. It’s fast growing and will grow to about 40m. I will be visiting all of the trees on the ‘great trees of London’ list and reporting back on them. Dulwich Park is well worth a visit so make sure you look this tree up when you’re there it’s very impressive.