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It is the type species of the genus (the species by which the oak genus Quercus is defined), and a member of the white oak section Quercus section Quercus. The populations in Italy, southeast Europe, and Asia Minor and the Caucasus are sometimes treated as separate species, Q. brutia Tenore, Q. pedunculiflora K. Koch and Q. haas Kotschy respectively. It is a large deciduous tree 25–35 m tall (exceptionally to 40 m), with lobed and nearly sessile (very short-stalked) leaves 7–14 cm long. Flowering takes place in mid spring, and their fruit, called acorns, ripen by autumn of the same year. The acorns are 2–2.5 cm long, pedunculate (having a peduncle or acorn-stalk, 3–7 cm long) with one to four acorns on each peduncle. It is a long-lived tree, with a large widespreading head of rugged branches. While it may naturally live to an age of a few centuries, many of the oldest trees are pollarded or coppiced, both pruning techniques that extend the tree's potential lifespan, if not its health. A specimen of notable longevity is one in Stelmužė, Lithuania which is believed to be approximately 1,500 years old, possibly making it the oldest oak in Europe; another specimen, called the Kongeegen (Kings Oak), estimated to be about 1,200 years old, grows in Jaegerspris, Denmark. Yet another can be found in Sweden, Kvilleken. It is over 1,000 years old and 14 meters around. Of maiden (not pollarded) specimens, one of the oldest is the great oak of Ivenack, Germany. Tree-ring research of this tree and other oaks nearby gives an estimated age of 700 to 800 years old. A close relative is the Sessile Oak (Quercus petraea), which shares much of its range. Pedunculate Oak is distinguished from this species by its leaves having only a very short stalk 3–8 mm long, and by its pendunculate acorns. The two often hybridise in the wild, the hybrid being known as Quercus × rosacea. Within its native range it is valued for its importance to insects and other wildlife. Numerous insects live on the leaves, buds, and in the acorns. The acorns form a valuable food resource for several small mammals and some birds, notably Eurasian Jays Garrulus glandarius. It is planted for forestry, and produces a long-lasting and durable heartwood, much in demand for interior and furniture work.
Cultivars and hybridsA number of cultivars are grown in arboreta and in parks and gardens. The most common cultivar is Quercus robur 'Fastigiata', and is the exception among Q. robur cultivars which are generally smaller than the standard tree, growing to between 10-15 m and exhibit unusual leaf or crown shape characteristics.
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