This small tree is displaying fat buds and downy female catkins beside the Henslow Walk.
A member of the Fagaceae (beech family) the oak genus (Quercus) occurs in Europe, Asia, North America and Central America. Taxonomically complex, the genus contains between 400 and 450 species of deciduous, semievergreen and evergreen trees and shrubs. The leaves are alternate, and may be entire, lobed or toothed, and some produce good autumn colour, such as Q. velutina. The genus is monoecious, and female and male catkins are produced on the same plant, and the fruit is a nut (acorn) held in a cup. Q. pontica (Armenian oak) is an endangered species from Armenia, eastern Turkey, northern Iran and the Caucasus. The species takes its specific name from Pontus, the ancient Greek name given for the region on the southern shores of the Black Sea in Turkey. In its natural range it is threatened by overgrazing, forestry and harvesting for fuel. Q. pontica is a stout, small tree or shrub reaching 6m in height. In spring fat, scaled buds produce short, downy female catkins, which are followed by longer pendent male catkins. These emerge with the newly emerging leaves which reach 20cm in length and have distinct parallel veins and an uneven toothed margin. It was first introduced into cultivation in Germany in the 1810’s, but the first recorded plantings in the British Isles is of a plant introduced to Kew in 1909 from the Späath plant nursery in Berlin.