The trees on this page are all members of the Fagaceae family of flowering plants, commonly referred to as the Beech Tree family.
Oaks are a sub-family of Beech Trees, which have Acorns as their fruit.
Chestnuts are also members of the Beech family, not to be confused with Horse Chestnuts that are not!
Oak Family
English Oak
Quercus robur.
The National Tree of England. There are over 500 in the park, some are over 200 years old.
The leaves have short stems, whereas the acorns are on long stems.
Not all are “pure” English Oak, some are hybrids with the Sessile Oak – its not easy to tell them apart and are mostly labelled as English Oak on our map.
They are native to the UK.
Sessile Oak
Quercus petraea.
Very similar to the English Oak, but the leaves are on stems, and the acorns are not.
Only a few in the park.
They are the only other oaks that are native to the UK.
Pin Oak
Quercus palustris.
The Pin Oak’s leaves are deeply lobed and glossy green in the summer, turning red to bronze in the fall.
The lower branches have often died back to the trunk.
Its acorns are small and brown, with a knobby cap that covers almost half of the nut.
Hungarian Oak
Quercus frainetto.
Described by many as the most magnificent Oak of them all.
The leaves are lobed and glossy green, and the tree produces acorns that are typically longer and more slender than those of other oak species.
Only one specimen in the park.
Cypress Oak
Quercus robur forma fastigiata.
Also known as a Pyramid Oak, it is a variant of the English Oak.
Cypress oak leaves are simple, alternate, and have a serrated margin. They are typically dark green and glossy, with a leathery texture, and turn reddish-brown in the fall before dropping.
Turkey Oak
Quercus cerris.
The leaf is similar to the English Oak, but close inspection will see twisting whiskers on the twig where the leaf is joined.
Introduced to the UK in the 1750’s.
Holm Oak
Quercus ilex.
Holm is an old English word meaning Holly.
The Holm oak leaves are not lobed like the other Oaks in the park, and the tree is often confused with Holly, thus the name “Holly Oak”.
It is also an Evergreen Oak, keeping its leaves for 3 years, before losing them in spring.
The species was introduced to the UK in the late 16th century, from Italy – about the same time the Hall was built, using some skilled workers from Italy. Coincidence?
Red Oak
Quercus rubra.
The leaves are much larger than the English / Sessile Oak.
Introduced into the UK as it is faster growing than the native oaks, reaching maturity for harvesting wood in 80-100 years.
Turner’s Oak
Quercus x turneri ‘Pseodoturneri’
A hybrid of the English Oak and Holm Oak, giving it evergreen tendencies.
Lucombe Oak
Quercus x hispanica ‘Lucombena’
A hybrid of the Turkey Oak and Cork Oak.
Arbour Oak
The Arbour Oak on Arbour Hill in Wollaton Park is a magnificent Oak tree with a girth of nearly 7 meters and a spread of 40 meters. It is estimated to be over 550 years old, making it the oldest tree in the park.
- It is a hybrid between an English Oak and Sessile Oak (Quercus x rosacea).
- It is thought to have started life in the 1460s, making it older than Wollaton Hall, which was built in 1588.
- The tree was pollarded in the 17th century, which means that its branches were regularly cut back to encourage new growth.
Beech Trees
Beech
Fagus sylvatica.
Beech trees are large, deciduous trees that can grow up to 40 meters tall. They have smooth, grey bark and lobed leaves that turn a golden-brown colour in autumn.
Fern-Leaved Beech
Fagus sylvatica ‘Aspleniifolia’.
The Fern-Leaved Beech tree is a medium-sized tree, typically growing to 20-30 meters tall. It has a slender, conical crown and smooth, grey bark. The leaves are fern-like, 10-15 centimetres long, and dark green. The flowers are small and inconspicuous, and the fruit is a small, brown nut.
When branches are damaged, the new growth may revert to that of the common Beech leaf – at least one example can be seen in the formal garden.
Copper Beech
Fagus sylvatica f. purpurea.
Like a Beech, but with copper-coloured leaves!
Roble Beech
Nothofagus obliqua.
A variety of Southern Beech.
The southern beech tree is a large, deciduous tree that can grow up to 50 meters tall. It has smooth, grey bark and glossy, dark green leaves.
Chestnut
Sweet Chestnut
Castanea sativa.
The leaves of the sweet chestnut are lance-shaped, with a pointed tip and a serrated edge, and are a glossy, dark green colour.
Photographs used in the Tree Galleries were taken in Wollaton Park and are reproduced with the original artist’s permission.
Copyright © for each picture remains with the original artist, who is duly acknowledged for their contribution.
Contributors include Colin Robbins, Wendy Martin, and Chris Golightly.
Tree descriptions were generated with the assistance of Google Bard.