Kermes oak (Quercus Coccífera)

kermes oak in its natural habitat

The kermes oak, of scientific name Quercus Coccifera, it has many uses and special features. It is a fairly well-known species of shrub found in the Mediterranean region. It belongs to the Fagaceae family and has many common names.

Do you want to know everything about kermes oak and its many uses and common names?

Description of the Coscoja

kermes oak leaves

It is an evergreen shrub that stays green all year round. It can reach a maximum of about two meters in height, although depending on the care and the place where it is, it can reach heights of up to 4 or 5 meters and become a kind of little tree.

In its morphology we can observe abundant ramifications from the base in such a way that the branches intertwine and make a kind of Impenetrable "wall". The leaves are green throughout the year and alternate between some that fall faster and others that do not. They are wavy in shape and hairless on both sides with a shiny surface. To differentiate them, you can see how the male flowers are much smaller than the female ones. The female ones are born on the same plant and can be solitary or be grouped by two or three.

The fruit that has the kermes oak it's the acorn. It is a single-seeded fruit that can be separated into two halves (cotyledons) longitudinally. The flowering time is in April or higher and the fruiting season is in August of the year after flowering.

Distribution and habitat

some kermes oak for the animal shelter

This plant reproduces very easily through acorn seeds. Such is its ease of reproduction that it is able to germinate before falling from the tree. Another option to reproduce is that of multiplying by root and stump shoots. It is a plant that can grow well in all types of soils and is almost always in the form of a shrub.

It is usually more abundant in the "common domain" forest areas in the different fifths of the town. It is capable of adapting to many types of terrain, although its preferred and where it grows in optimal conditions is on those calcareous soils.

It is typical of those regions that have a desert appearance and that do not have any nucleus where there is a population. Kermes oak crops are not economically profitable, therefore, if there is an urban settlement in a rural area, the communities of this plant will disappear to be replaced by other plants with greater economic profitability.

Playback, functionality, and threats

kermes fruit

As mentioned before, kermes oak can be easily reproduced with acorn seeds at the time November and December.

Every time in our areas there is less presence of kermes oak, since in milder climates, it is replaced by some species with greater size, such as the holm oak, and also suffered a decline in populations some centuries ago due to the use to produce charcoal.

This plant, like any living being in an ecosystem, fulfills a certain function with the rest of the habitat. And it is that its presence in ecosystems constitutes the only food and refuge for fauna. Kermes oak is very necessary in places like the Ebro valley and other steppe areas, where it is replacing the holm oak communities due to low rainfall.

They are also very important ecologically thanks to the fact that they can create dense forests due to their intertwined branches. In those forests in which we find kermes oak with heights of 5 meters and accompanied by other climbing species such as asparagus or sarsaparilla, they can form quite dense places for the protection of many animal habitats. The birds they can nest and feel more protected and acorns serve as food for foxes, rodents and wild boars.

As the effects of climate change progress, the climate is becoming progressively more continental and, therefore, drier and with more extreme temperatures. For this reason, dwarf conifers that have a slower growth such as juniper or juniper accompany the kermes oak. It is the last species that remains to disappear due to the decrease in rainfall.

Uses of kermes oak

fruit of quercus coccifera

This shrub has numerous uses depending on its characteristics and properties. Its bark is rich in tannins and can be used in tanneries and to dye some wool black. Wood is of little value, although it does serve as fuel and to generate charcoal.

They were also used to feed cattle, goats, and sometimes pigs because of their bitter taste. The areas with abundant kermes oak can be of hunting interest, since they are ideal places for species such as rabbit, partridge, hare, etc. Take refuge. Finally, it is necessary to remember the magnificent protection that it can give to impoverished lands, which is why it is necessary to avoid that repeated fires or intensive grazing cause their degeneration.

Kermes oak also has numerous medicinal uses. Thanks to its high tannin content, it can be extracted, by decoction of the bark, a remedy for diarrhea and symptoms of urinary incontinence. If that decoction is made externally, it can help to relieve hemorrhoids and chilblains. It also has anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, febrifuge properties and is shown as an effective tonic.

Other common names for kermes oak

Kermes oak has a list of names by which it is called, apart from its common and scientific main name. These names are:

Acorn, kermes acorn, billota, carcoja, carcojo, carcoxa, carcoxo, holm oak, carrasco, carrasquilla, helmet, chabarrasca, chaparra, short, short edge, short winged, chapina, charasca, kermes oak, kermes oak, kermes mother of the grana, coscoja morisquilla, kermes oak, kermes oak, coscolina, coscolinas, coscolla, coscolla blanca, cusculla, cuzcochu, garriga, grana, granatilla, tangle, matarrubia, matarubia, matasuegras, mata Rubia, mesto, mesto dwarf, mesto menor, palo-mesto and carrasqueño oak.

Care and requirements

sowing kermes oak

If we want to have a kermes oak in our garden, we only have to take some aspects into account:

  • No need for too much watering, avoiding waterlogging.
  • It is not necessary to apply any type of fertilizer.
  • A formation pruning is done in the middle of winter.
  • You need a drier and stony soil.

As you can see, kermes oak is a shrub with many properties and with a history behind it. You already know something more about Mediterranean plants.


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