Southern Live Oak
Quercus Virginiana
Visitors gather around the historic Bok Tower, also known as the Singing Tower, to enjoy a 60-bell carillon concert under an expanse of beautiful southern live oaks dripping with Spanish moss. These iconic trees set the stage for the concert heard by participants of a Grand Harbor trip to the Bok Tower Gardens this past March.
The majestic southern live oak or live oak, symbol of the South and keystone to the ecosystem of coastal areas from Virginia to Texas, is a hardy tree that provides cover, habitat, and food to hundreds of mammals, birds, reptiles, and insects. This fast growing tree may also be home to epiphytes as Spanish moss, resurrection fern, and ball moss. A mature live oak may reach a height of 60 to 80’ with a canopy of twice that size, and branches that droop and grow horizontally. Unlike the northern variety of oaks, this oak is almost evergreen. Over a few weeks in the spring, new leaves emerge as old leaves drop never leaving the tree without foliage, so it looks ‘live’ all year. The live oak puts down a deep tap root that anchors the young tree and then develops an extensive root system. The root system and its low center of gravity make this tree wind resistant, one that has a good chance of withstanding a hurricane. Mature at 75 years, these oaks may live to 200 years or more. Fairfield Oak at Bulow Creek State Park in Ormond Beach, Florida is thought to be Florida’s oldest live oak at almost 500 years.
In the spring hanging male flowers, called catkins , let loose large quantities of yellow pollen into the air, drifting in the wind to reach the smaller female flowers. Copious amounts of pollen will cover all in its wake, making an unhappy time for
people with pollen allergies and a powdery mess to clean off the tops of cars. After pollination the female flower begins to develop into an acorn.
The fall brings the fully developed dark brown acorns loved by squirrels, birds, black bears, deer and many other vertebrate animals, more than 100 species. This abundance of acorns defines animal movement patterns in the fall and into the winter. Animals who relied on grasses and herbaceous plants in the spring and summer, turn to the highly nutritious and tasty acorns in the fall. The high protein value of these acorns are desired by animals to carry them through to the next spring.
When walking down Grand Harbor Drive lined with southern live oaks, a look up might reveal an osprey having lunch in its boughs, a blue jay building a nest, or a woodpecker pecking for insects, and know that these oaks not only add beauty and shade to our environment but also serve to protect, feed, and provide habitat for many of our Grand Harbor animal friends.
Lyn Groves, GH Audubon