golden chinkapin (Castanopsis chrysophylla)

• Size: Grows to 150' tall and 6' in diameter. Grows as a shrub at high elevations.

• Leaves: Simple, alternate, evergreen. Lanceolate; 2"-5" long; stiff and leathery; green above and golden below; smooth margins.

• Fruit: Sharp, spiny burr with 1-2 triangular nuts.

• Twigs: Yellow, star-shaped pith.

• Bark: Deeply furrowed and ridged; 1"-2" thick.

• Distribution: Grows over most of western Oregon below 5,000 feet and at scattered points on the east slopes of the Cascades; it also grows throughout California.

For more information about this species see "Trees to Know in Oregon".