I’ve been doing some research on our dear live oak trees here in the South. I have studied and painted them for many years, and there are many I call friends. I found this about them from the Natural Wildlife Federation:
“Southern live oaks are majestic trees that are emblems of the South. When given enough room to grow, their sweeping limbs plunge toward the ground before shooting upward, creating an impressive array of branches. Crowns of the largest southern live oaks reach diameters of 150 feet (45.7 meters)—nearly large enough to encompass half of a football field. On average, though, the crown spread is 80 feet (24 meters) and the height is 50 feet (15 meters). Branches usually stem from a single trunk, which can grow to five or six feet (1.5 to 1.8 meters) in diameter.
Unlike most oak trees, which are deciduous, southern live oaks are nearly evergreen. They replace their leaves over a short period of several weeks in the spring. Sweet, tapered acorns produced by the trees are eaten by birds, and mammals including sapsuckers, mallards, wild turkeys, squirrels, black birds, and deer. The threatened Florida scrub jay relies on the scrub form of the southern live oak for nesting. Other birds make use of the moss that frequently hangs from the tree branches to construct nests.”
There is nothing like these majestic trees, growing in fields of farms and ranches, here in north Florida. They are massive. I remember a trip to Vero Beach a few years ago. The flora is very different there. Someone told me there was a huge live oak in a particular neighborhood. She gave me the address. When I found it, I laughed. It was a baby compared to those who grow in my part of Florida.
Country painters love our trees…..
