Quercus faginea in the Mounts of Tlemcen (North-west Algeria): State of Knowledge

In this study, we present a summary of the dendrometric characteristics, the microscopic image and the physic-mechanical properties of wood and principally leaves morphology for to show the existence of zeen oak (Quercus faginea) population in the far North West of Algeria with specific characters. The morphology of 400 mature leaves taken from 10 trees at the 4 exposures shows that the length of the leaf blade is about 8.568 cm, the width is 4.955 cm, its perimeter about 14.280 cm and its surface area 15.14 cm2. The mature leaf is composed of 20 lobes; the length of the six largest lobes is about 3.098 cm and the angles of their ribs 51.352°. The morphological characters studied have relatively high variability between the four aspects. Leaves at southern aspect have the lowest vegetative values. In contrast, at eastern aspect trees have large leaves with vegetative characters developed.