Quercus garryana var. breweri

Brewer's oak

Family: Fagaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Brewer's oak is a California native shrub found in the Klamath Ranges, northern Coast Ranges, and central Coast Ranges (northwestern San Luis Obispo County) in mountain slopes, conifer forest, and maritime chaparral at elevations of 1,400 to 2,000 meters. Flowering from April to June, this plant produces pale yellow to green flowers in small clusters. Growing as a spreading shrub with multiple trunks 2 to 4 meters tall, it has distinctively textured branches with sparse brown terminal buds. Its leaves are 5 to 9 centimeters long, with a distinctive stellate hair pattern on the underside, creating a soft, textured surface with 4 to 6 ray-like hairs. The plant forms a complex, multi-trunked structure that provides unique architectural interest in its native mountain habitats.

Habitat: Mountain slopes, conifer forest, maritime chaparral

Bloom period: Apr-Jun

Elevation: (150)1400-2000 m

Bioregions: KR, NCoRH, CCo (nw San Luis Obispo Co.)

California counties: Lake, Kern, Shasta, Siskiyou, Tehama, Nevada, Los Angeles, Mendocino, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, Merced, Butte, Del Norte, Tuolumne, Plumas, Glenn, Humboldt, El Dorado, Placer, Trinity, Amador, Fresno, Mariposa, Colusa, Yuba, Calaveras, Madera

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.