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Big Oak Tree

Did you know that Tulare County is home to the largest oaks in the country? The valley oak, quercus lobata is not what this big oak tree is. I found this tree somewhere along Dry Creek Road. I didn’t get close enough to know what kind, but I can tell by the shape that this isn’t a valley oak. It is unusually perfect, almost symmetrical, and all without ever having been pruned (except when cattle chew on the lower leaves.)

Sky and distant ridge.
Distant waves of wildflowers, closer blades of grass.
Added wildflowers, a rock, more blades of grass and a few limbs because I couldn’t wait to get to that tree.
Details in the grass, another rock, and details in the dirt.
Finally started on the tree.
Am I finished? Time will tell.

Once it is dry, I will sign it, paint the edges, and either photograph or scan it, so you can see it with its brighter and more accurate colors.

4 Comments

  1. I’m always amazed that you can start with splashes of out-of-focus blobs (like what I see when I don’t have my glasses on) and add details so it becomes a beautiful painting. This post is a prime example of just that!

    P.S. The Santa Clarita Valley is known for its “heritage oaks,” as well. They are just lovely!

    • Sharon, that is a great description of those beginnings: out-of-focus, slowly clearing up as I keep adding corrective lenses over the top.

      Now I will go look up heritage oaks—thank you!

      • I think what makes an oak tree “heritage” is the circumference of the trunk (e.g., its age). Come to think of it, in that case I could qualify as a “heritage woman!”

    • I just looked up the heritage oaks in Santa Clarita. The one called Old Glory, 400 years old, was the prominent story, and it is indeed the valley oak, quercus lobata!

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