The Daimyo oak (sometimes written Daimio) is a deciduous oak native to Japan, Korea and China. It was introduced into the British Isles in 1830 and was awarded an RHS Award of Merit in 1901, but is seldom seen except in botanic gardens. There is a large specimen in Avondale forest Park in County Wicklow. It will grow to 30m in the wild, but in the UK perhaps to 15m. It is said (by nurseries selling it) to be slow growing and in some areas can be damaged by frost so that it forms more of a shrub than a tree. Its most distinctive feature is the large size of the leaves which can reach up to 40cm long. In shape they are like enormous versions of the native pedunculate oak (Quercus robur), leathery in texture and finely hairy on the underside. The male flowers are long greenish catkins and the small acorns are produced in bushy, scaly cups in September. The Daimyo oak fruits at a young age and the specimen in Belfast Botanic Gardens is already producing acorns.

Photos taken in Belfast Botanic Gardens in 2009. Copyright: Friends of Belfast Botanic Gardens.