Quercus hintonii E.F.Warb.

Tree to 15 m tall, 50 cm diameter, the bark cracking into square plates with age. Shoots stout, to 4 mm diameter, with a dense whitish-yellow stellate tomentum when young that mainly falls by the second year, and showing conspicuous white lenticels. Leaves late deciduous but usually evergreen in cultivation, thickly leathery, lanceolate, to elliptic or obovate, to 21 cm long and 10 cm wide. Apex taper-pointed, aristate, base rounded or tapered. The margin is entire or with up to 7 aristate teeth on each side. They are densely covered in red hairs above when young, becoming glossy dark green above and glabrous except at the base and on the midrib, and with a dense yellow-brown tomentum beneath. Petiole tomentose, to 3 cm long. Fruits borne singly or up to 3 on a peduncle to 1.5 cm long, cupule saucer-shaped, c. 1.5 cm across and 5 mm tall with appressed, tomentose scales, acorns globose-ovoid with a pointed tip, about 1.5 cm tall, only the base included in the cup and ripening the second year. (Aguilar Enríquez & Romero Rangel 1995; Warburgh 1939).

Distribution  Mexico Guerrero, Michoacán, México

Habitat Oak-pine woodlands, in association with Q. magnoliifolia, Pinus oocarpa, P. pringlei, Clethra mexicana, Juniperus flaccida; 1400–2000 m.

USDA Hardiness Zone 8

RHS Hardiness Rating H4

Conservation status Endangered (EN)

Taxonomic note Romero Rangel et al. (2002) designated Quercus apiophylla, Q. ochroesthes and Q. sagata as synonyms of Q. hintonii, but observation of the type specimens indicates that these represent other taxa.