Quercus 131 7 



In southern Hungary and Servia, it is one of the constituents of the oak 

 forests, found on the hilly land and the lower slopes of the mountains, its 

 companions being Q. sessiliflora and Q. Cerris ; and is not met with in the great oak 

 forests of the alluvial plains, where Q. pedunculata is the sole species. It usually 

 grows on dry slopes with a sunny aspect, for which it is well adapted by its 

 pubescent leaves. These check evaporation of water ; and on hot days in summer 

 in the Drina valley, I observed the leaves on the upper part of the tree, exposed to 

 the sun, turning their greyish under surfaces to the east in the morning and to the 

 west in the afternoon. It occupies drier situations than Q. sessiliflora ; but does 

 not ascend on the hot exposed ridges, with shallower soil, to as great an altitude 

 as Q. Cerris, which often forms pure forests at 3000 ft. elevation. 



Q. conferta becomes less common west of the Drina valley, and is only met 

 with in Bosnia in the mountains south of the Save, east of Brcka, and in the valleys 

 of the Drina and Lim rivers. 



In Herzegovina, Q. conferta occurs in a few localities in the Narenta valley, 

 the most important being the large forest of Dobrava, south of Mostar and west 

 of Stolac, which is composed of a mixture of this species with Q. Cerris and 

 Q. macedonica. Similar woods are met with in Montenegro and in Albania. 



In Roumania, according to Huffel,^ it occasionally forms pure woods ; but is 

 more commonly mixed with Q. Cerris ; and in rare cases grows on moist clay soil 

 with Q. pedunculata. 



The largest tree,^ which I measured in an oak forest in the Drina valley at 

 about 1000 ft. elevation, was 85 ft. high and 12 ft. in girth; and here it seemed to 

 be outgrown by the Turkey oaks standing beside it, which attained about 100 ft. by 

 10 ft. ; but I was informed that in many places it grew to a larger size, equalling 

 Q. sessiliflora in height and girth. 



Q. sessiliflora and Q. conferta, growing in the hills in Servia, produce timber 

 which is practically indistinguishable and is exported under the same name. In 

 Slavonia, this hill oak timber is sold, for similar sizes, at about two-thirds the price 

 of the wood of Q. pedunculata. The latter, grown in the forests of the alluvial plain 

 of the Save, in moist ground, exposed to floods, is claimed locally to be the best oak 

 in the world ; and sells in the forest, close to the railway, when of the best quality 

 and over 3|- ft. in diameter, at about a shilling per cubic foot. 



Huffel, speaking of the wood of Q. conferta in Roumania, says that it has the 

 peculiar property of breaking transversely, when force is applied, as neatly as if cut 

 with a saw ; and that, on this account, it is unsuitable for building purposes ; but he 

 adds that it rends well, is beautifully figured, and not liable to crack or warp in 

 drying. (^- H.) 



Cultivation 



Q. conferta was introduced into England shortly before 1838, as Loudon^ 

 mentions, as a possible variety of Q. Toza, an oak, in the Horticultural Society's 



^ Les Forits de la Roumanie, i (11300). 



2 A tree cut down in this forest, ninety-five years old, showed on a radius of 14 in., II in. of heartwood with 85 annual 

 rings, and 3 in. of sapwood with 10 rings. ' Arb. et Frut. Brit. iii. 1844 (1838). 



