Holm oak
Introduced, naturalised · Up to 30 m

Holm oak

Quercus ilex · Fagaceae

Holm oak is an evergreen tree with a huge, dense, rounded crown. Its oval leaves are glossy blackish green on top and fuzzy greyish fawn underneath.

Often mistaken for holly. How to tell them apart →
Know it byLeavesOval, 4 to 12 cm, glossy blackish green, spiny on young trees.ShapeBroad, often bushy, branches rising close from low on the trunk.AcornsSmall and pointed, 15 to 20 mm long.

Then check · BarkBlackish and thick, and on an older tree cracked closely into small, shallow squares all over.

How to identify a holm oak

Holm oak: leavesLouis Aureglia, CC BY 4.0
Leaves

Oval and 4 to 12 cm long, glossy blackish green on top and fuzzy greyish fawn beneath, spiny-edged on young trees.

Holm oak: shape
Shape

A broad, dense, evergreen dome, often bushy, with branches rising close and straight from low on a curving trunk.

Holm oak: acornsMatthew Vosper, CC BY 4.0
Acorns

Small and pointed, 15 to 20 mm long, sitting deep in a cup covered in rows of tiny hairy scales.

Learn the holm oak in TreelyEvery part through the year, and a short round each day until you know it.Get Treely

Every part, in photographs

Holm oak leaves: dark evergreen ovals, greyish fawn beneathLouis Aureglia, CC BY 4.0
LeavesDark evergreen ovals, greyish fawn beneath
Holm oak catkins: golden catkins over the dark crown, early summerNico Hernandez, CC BY 4.0
CatkinsGolden catkins over the dark crown, early summer
Holm oak acorns: small pointed acorns deep in hairy cupsMatthew Vosper, CC BY 4.0
AcornsSmall pointed acorns deep in hairy cups
Holm oak bark: blackish, closely cracked into small squaresetrusko25, CC BY 4.0
BarkBlackish, closely cracked into small squares
Holm oak shape: huge dense rounded evergreen dome
ShapeHuge dense rounded evergreen dome

When to look

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In leaf
Catkins
Acorns

In leaf: all year · Catkins: May to June · Acorns: July to November

Every tree on the calendar

Where you’ll find it

Parks, shrubberies and shelter belts, especially near the sea, where it copes well with salt spray. It is more common in the south, as it suffers in severe winters.

What it’s mistaken for

Holm oak: leaf undersideHolly: leaf undersideHolm oak or holly?Both have dark, glossy leaves, and young holm oaks have spines like holly's.Leaf underside Holm oak: outline of a leafEnglish oak: outline of a leafHolm oak or English oak?Both are broad-crowned park oaks with acorns.Outline of a leaf
  • Cherry laurelBoth are dark broadleaf evergreens of hedges, parks and shrubberies. Leaf. Holm oak: greyish fawn coat of hairs. Cherry laurel: hairless, with tiny bumps near the base.

More oaks, beeches and sweet chestnut

Common beechFagus sylvaticaCopper beechFagus sylvatica f. purpureaEnglish oakQuercus roburRed oakQuercus rubraSessile oakQuercus petraeaSweet chestnutCastanea sativaTurkey oakQuercus cerris
In the app

There’s more of the holm oak in Treely

  • Every part, through the yearLeaves, bark, buds, flowers and fruit, photographed in every season
  • Its lookalikes, side by sideThe checks that settle it, part by part
  • A short round each dayUntil you know the holm oak on sight, from any side
  • Name it from a photoA leaf, the bark or a flower, and Treely tells you which tree
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Every fact on this page is checked against the Collins Tree Guide, last in November 2026. Spotted something that looks wrong in front of a real tree? Tell us. How we check.

Photographs: sim_elliott (CC0), Louis Aureglia (CC BY 4.0), Matthew Vosper (CC BY 4.0), Nico Hernandez (CC BY 4.0), etrusko25 (CC BY 4.0), Glossysun (Sunny Pearce) (CC BY 4.0), Leon Cross (CC BY 4.0). With thanks to everyone who shares their photographs on iNaturalist and Wikimedia Commons.