what does MW mean in your name... give us a big city name.. how sure are you of the z6?

ken

Midwest

refer to previous lengthy thread HERE I would point you in the direction of Q. myrsinifolia

The example that I gave in that thread was in northern Philadelphia.

What about a Darlington oak?

Ahhh yes, that thread. The general consensus is Lithocarpus henryi is the hardiest. In spite of not being named Quercus, it definitely makes acorns. I guess the question is what does OP want and what is meant by evergreen oak? If an oak that looks like live oak, then semi-deciduous Darlington oak is a candidate, or the interior TX/OK live oaks discussed in that idiotic thread somewhere with over 1000 posts that I now refuse to click on. If a bolder more subtropical "generic Asian BLE" look is desired, the Lithocarpus.

HERE another good thread from helpful posters of the past. I'm sorry that they no longer post here. Poaky1 also had lengthy threads about live oaks. You should search for them.

You could search your state's Champion Tree List for Darlington Oak but don't get your hopes up, I'm in Maryland and have never seen one.

midwest can range from missouri.. thru the top of michigan...

why cant you not give us a big city name...

does your ground freeze??

ken

Thanks davidrt for the early morning laugh. At times, some things need to be put to rest......

OP has indicated in previous postings that they live in Ohio. And yes the soil freezes.....as it will in any location that routinely experiences extended periods of subfreezing weather. Typically any zone lower than 7.

FWIW, in the worse winters here, the ground does freeze, and pretty deeply, at least several inches. However, scads of 'exotic' look broadleaved evergreens in my garden like Camellia, Lithocarpus, Daphyniphyllum and Ternstroemia were fine. (Rhododendron it goes without saying!) At the nearby Udel arboretum, the Quercus myrsinifolia and even more tender plants like Magnolia maudiae were ok, too. The secret is getting them fully established by planting at least a full grown gallon or more plant in spring, not over [frequently] watering, having them mulched, and having them fully dormant by not fertilizing after mid July.

Quercus fusiformis, Quercus chrysolepsis, Quercus wislizenii, Quercus rhysophylla, Quercus balloot, Quercus grisea, Quercus turbinella. Quercus hypoleucoides, and Quercus Phylliroides from hardy seed source possibly. Quercus chrysolepsis had no leaf burn at -10F at Fintry BC, and some leaf burn at -15F during the cold winter of 1990.

Quartz mountain Live oak the Quercus Fusiformis is the hardiest. But, don't plant a really small one out in the ground. I have a greenhouse, but, if you don't, a place where it's sorta cold, but not too cold or freezing is good for the tree in winter.

I had a bigger ( about 4 feet when I got it) LO from somebody in Missourri, and it did great for approximately 5 years. It died last winter, but, it wasn't from cold, it had done great in much colder than what that last winters temps. I'm going to possibly try some acorns this fall. I had another one die too, but, that was from hot temps and me not watering it every day. That one had been green and good, then died in the warm months. Make sure you get the Quartz Mountain LO, it's hardier.

I hope this helps

The question is where do you buy one? i love Q Fusiformis

Once again, a thread to wonder, 'was bumping this actually imparting useful new information'?

Most of the oaks proposed will almost certainly not live long and prosper anywhere east of, say, the Texas dry line. This one

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quercus_wislizeni

for example, is native to California. It's not like California was discovered yesterday. If any of the coastal California live oaks could grow anywhere in the eastern US, they'd be growing there already.

A handful from the 'summer monsoon' parts of the SW have at least been planted experimentally in the Southeast, but they would need southwestern conditions to be completely hardy. https://jcra.ncsu.edu/horticulture/our-plants/results.php?search=Quercus+turbinella

This is probably the most promising, but only for zone 7 https://jcra.ncsu.edu/horticulture/our-plants/results.php?search=quercus+hypoleucoides

I just saw a couple Mexican Q. rhysophyllas in North Carolina, but they are far from proving themselves as zone 6 hardy, yet.

Q phillyreoides https://www.treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/quercus/quercus-phillyreoides/

Is probably the most promising, and I am reminded I am literally set to repot mine this weekend! Seed is available from Sheffield, you are warned that they are absolutely delectable to rabbits and probably deer, so protect accordingly.

Q. fusiformis used to be sold by Woodlanders, you could try asking them if they ever plan to sell it again.

I have Q. hypoleucoides in my Z8 garden, got it at onegreenworld.com. It is growing like gangbusters with regular irrigation. According to xeraplants.com there is a tree doing well in Denver, which the 2023 map says is Z6.

Oaks are usually seed grown, if you find trees to purchase they will usually be very small, very easy to ship and very inexpensive...go for it!

Denver? Wow, Denver has pretty bad winters for zone 6! I feel like it should be considered zone 5

I've seen Quartz mountain Live oak (Quercus Fusiformis Quartz mountain) for sale at "Alligator alley" plant farm online. But, frequently they are sold out.

I do think what I had to say, bumping the thread up did have some purpose because I had a QMLO that did great for me in my zone 6a in Pa for at least 5 years. And, I am sure that cold hadn't killed it because the winter we had right before it died was a zone 7 winter. It had done great, stayed green every winter when it had gone down to minus 8 F or above that. The minus 8 F was the coldest it had to endure, and that was it's first winter here. I don't know what killed it, but, it sure wasn't cold.

I think one of my dogs peed on it too often, and caused a fungus or something. So, I'll be planting any possible new ones outside of the dog fence for sure. The Quartz mountain Live oak is worth a try to anybody that wants to try a LO in a zone 6, as long as you baby it a bit until it gets a bit bigger than a tiny whip before planting it outside. And, water it a good bit when it doesn't rain. That's how I killed a recent one. It was in the 90's, and I watered it every 3 days instead of daily. I'm going to try again if I can.

Btw, make sure that it's a Quartz Mountain Q. Fusiformis, the reg Fusi's aren't as hardy. I have a plain Fusi that dies down to the ground yearly, and grows about 6 feet tall. A shrub basically.

Would you mind telling me what area you are in so I can compare different zone 6s?

Southwestern Pa, about 30-40 miles from Pitsburgh, Pa. Fayette county is where I am, the left side of the county. Smock Pa

You get a bit colder than me here in NE Ohio

It took a bit of googling, but here is the nursery mentioned by poaky1.

https://www.alligatoralley.com/mailorder.html

I wish they had them in stock! They look so nice

Yeah, I know they do. Eventually they should get some in.

As far as me getting colder than you do, it's been getting warmer than usual. Climate change I suppose. Last winter it was really warm many days. And, no below zero at all. Many T shirt days.

A zone 7a winter for sure. But, it can always change of course.

We had a 7a winter as well. I was surprised when my snapdragons survived and bloomed this year for the second time!

Wow, I thought that Snapdragons were purely annuals. I started some from seed, they've been blooming. Mine are in a shallow planter, so I doubt they'll come back next year. But, you know what I've been getting coming back up every year that is supposed to be a zone 8 and warmer plant? Calla Lillies. I have tons of them. They are in raised beds though. I guess that is why.

I wanna share them, but my friends don't have their own property. Maybe I'll try some in the ground, then if they die, at least I tried to not waste them.

Here you go Henry, Q. myrsinifolia or the Asian Bamboo-leaved oak. I found these very easy to raise from acorns. Mature trees can be found at Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia. New growth comes out bronze in late spring. Will this one grow in Ohio, I can't say, why not ask around and get back with us.