Quercus cerris
Harder than European oak and considerably cheaper, for one reason: it is difficult to dry. Buy it already stable and it is a bargain.

Al momento non è disponibile Turkey Oak. Queste specie sono adatte agli stessi progetti e hanno pezzi disponibili.
Ti inviamo un’email quando arrivano nuove tavole di Turkey Oak su KORENA. Ogni pezzo è unico, quindi conviene saperlo in anticipo.
Aspetto del legno
Denser and harder than either European oak, with a coarser and more open texture. Colour is a light to mid brown, generally plainer and less olive than Quercus robur, with wide rays that produce a bold but less silvery fleck on quartersawn faces. Its reputation in the trade is poor, earned by a strong tendency to check and distort in drying rather than by any weakness in the finished wood.
Lavorazione
Works similarly to the American oaks according to the source cited here. It is harder and denser than Quercus robur, so it blunts cutters faster and demands more power in the cut, but it machines cleanly once dry and stable. The very wide rays can lift on a quartersawn face if the cut is heavy. Grain filler is needed for a smooth finish given the coarse open pores.
Takes stain and finish much as other oaks do, and the plainer colour actually accepts stain more evenly than the olive cast of European oak. The coarse open pores need filling for a smooth surface. The same tannin and iron reaction applies as in every oak, so brass or stainless fittings only and no steel wool.
This is the species specific problem and the reason Turkey Oak is cheap. It is markedly prone to checking, honeycombing and severe distortion during drying, considerably worse than Quercus robur or petraea, and volumetric shrinkage at 16 percent is the highest of any hardwood KORENA lists. Tangential shrinkage of 10 percent against 6 percent radial compounds it. Slowly air dried stock that has already stabilised is the only version of this timber worth buying.
Il legno si gonfia e si ritira in larghezza al variare dell’umidità dell’aria. Stima il movimento stagionale di un piano in Turkey Oak prima di progettare i fissaggi.
Movimento stagionale previsto
circa 11,4 mm
Fissa il piano con nottolini o staffe asolate, non con colla o viti serrate.
Modello di ritiro lineare: larghezza × (ritiro ÷ 28 % di saturazione delle fibre) × variazione stagionale dell’umidità. Usa un ritiro tangenziale del 10 % per Turkey Oak. È una stima di progetto, non una garanzia.
Oak is a documented sensitiser, with reactions typically including eye and skin irritation and asthma-like symptoms. Repeated exposure to oak dust carries elevated nasal cancer risk, so extraction is not optional in a production setting.
Quercus cerris is the oak of southeastern Europe and Asia Minor, dominant through the Balkans, Hungary, Italy and Turkey. It grows fast on poor dry soils where the northern oaks struggle, and it has been planted widely outside its range. Balkan sourced material is common and inexpensive in the EU market.
Quercus cerris is the oak of southeastern Europe and Asia Minor. It dominates through the Balkans, Hungary, Italy and Turkey, growing fast on poor dry soils where the northern oaks struggle, and it has been planted well outside that range.
It has a poor reputation in the trade, and that reputation is worth understanding precisely, because it is only half deserved. The finished wood is not inferior. At 720 kg per cubic metre it is denser than European oak, and its modulus of rupture of 114.3 MPa is well above the 97.1 MPa of sessile oak. The problem is entirely in getting it from log to stable board.
Turkey Oak checks, honeycombs and distorts during drying far more readily than Quercus robur or petraea.
The numbers explain why. Volumetric shrinkage is 16 percent, the highest of any hardwood in this catalogue. Tangential shrinkage of 10 percent against 6 percent radial gives a ratio that guarantees flatsawn boards will cup hard. Combine high total movement with a wide differential and a fast schedule, and the wood tears itself apart.
A significant proportion of what is cut degrades before it becomes usable timber, and the price of the survivors carries that loss. That is why Turkey Oak is cheap.
The practical consequence for a buyer is simple and important: the risk lives in the drying, not in the service life. A slab that has already been slowly dried and has stabilised is a hard, dense, durable board at a fraction of European oak money. A slab that was rushed is firewood that has not finished failing yet.
Domande degli acquirenti
Not because the finished wood is weaker. It is denser and harder than Quercus robur. The discount reflects how badly it behaves in drying: it checks, honeycombs and distorts far more readily, and volumetric shrinkage at 16 percent is the highest of any hardwood in this catalogue. A large proportion of what is cut degrades before it is usable, and the price carries that loss.
It is published as an estimate derived from specific gravity rather than a measured test, and KORENA records it that way in the source note on the species record. Treat 5,340 N as indicative. It places Turkey Oak above European oak at 4,980 N, which matches its higher density of 720 kg per cubic metre, but it is not a laboratory measurement.
Yes, provided the slab is already properly dried and stable. Buy air dried stock that has had time to settle rather than freshly kilned material, check the measured moisture value on the listing, and let it acclimatise in the room before flattening. Once through drying it is a hard, durable surface. The risk is entirely in the drying, not the service life.
Proprietà meccaniche
Valori di riferimento pubblicati. Quando le fonti non concordano, viene mostrato l’intervallo e il valore tipico è usato per le scale sopra.
| Densità (kg/m³)Massa per metro cubo con circa il 12 % di umidità. In genere, un legno più pesante è anche più duro e resistente. | 720 kg/m³ |
|---|---|
| Durezza Janka (N)Forza necessaria per spingere una sfera d’acciaio fino a metà nel legno. È la misura standard della resistenza alle ammaccature. | 5,340 N |
| MOR: modulo di rottura (MPa)Resistenza alla flessione: il carico al quale una trave si rompe. | 114 MPa |
| MOE: modulo elastico (GPa)Rigidità alla flessione: quanto si incurva una mensola o un piano sotto carico. | 10.8 GPa |
| Ritiro radialeRitiro trasversale agli anelli di crescita, dal legno verde a quello anidro. È il movimento delle tavole a taglio radiale. | 6.0 % |
| Ritiro tangenzialeRitiro lungo gli anelli di crescita. È il movimento delle tavole a taglio tangenziale e della maggior parte delle tavole KORENA. |
Not listed in the CITES Appendices, and reported by the source KORENA cites as not assessed on the IUCN Red List, so no IUCN status is shown rather than one being assumed. It is abundant and fast growing across southeastern Europe and is often treated as a low value species, which makes it both inexpensive and easy to source with documentation.


So buy stable stock. Prefer air dried material that has had time to settle over freshly kilned. Check the measured moisture value on the listing rather than trusting a description, and let the slab acclimatise in its final room before flattening.
Colour is a light to mid brown, plainer and straighter than European oak, without the olive cast of robur. Texture is coarse and the pores are large and open.
The rays are very wide, wider than in the other oaks here, and on a quartersawn face they produce a bold fleck. It reads differently from the fine silvery ribbon of sessile oak: larger, more assertive, less lustrous. Whether that is better is a matter of taste, but they are not the same figure and one will not pass for the other.
Inspect the end grain for honeycomb, look along the length for cupping and twist, and check for surface checks. On this species those defects are common enough that they should be assumed present until ruled out.
The cited source describes it as working similarly to the American oaks. It is harder and denser than European oak, so it blunts cutters faster and asks more of a machine, but a dry stable board machines cleanly.
The very wide rays can lift on a quartersawn face under a heavy cut. Lighter passes and sharp tooling handle it.
As with all oak, the coarse open pores need a grain filler if a smooth surface is the goal, and the tannin content means iron contact produces blue black staining. Brass or stainless fittings only, no steel wool, and no steel clamp bars left on damp work.
The Janka value shown for this species, 5,340 N, is published as an estimate derived from specific gravity rather than a measured laboratory test, and KORENA records that qualification in the source note on the species record rather than presenting the number bare.
Treat it as indicative. It places Turkey Oak above European oak, which is consistent with its higher density, but it is not the same class of evidence as a measured value.
It takes stain and finish much as other oaks do, and the plainer, less olive colour actually accepts stain more evenly than European oak, which can go muddy under a warm tone.
Grain filler for a smooth surface, standard oak finishing otherwise.
Rustic tabletops, flooring, interior joinery, cladding under cover, and decorative slabs where a hard dense oak is wanted and the budget will not carry European oak. At decay class 2 it is durable, so protected exterior use is reasonable.
It is the wrong answer if you are buying unseasoned or freshly kilned stock, if the project cannot absorb the risk of movement, or if the classic silvery quartersawn fleck of European oak is specifically what the design calls for.
Not listed in the CITES Appendices, and reported by the cited source as not assessed on the IUCN Red List, so no IUCN status is displayed rather than one being inferred.
It is abundant and fast growing across southeastern Europe and is often treated as a low value species locally, which makes it both inexpensive and straightforward to source with proper documentation. Balkan sourced material is common in the EU market, and KORENA listings record the originating yard and region.
Plainer overall. The colour is a straighter light to mid brown without the olive cast of Quercus robur, and while the rays are very wide, the quartersawn fleck reads bolder but less silvery. If you want the classic silvery ray fleck, sessile oak delivers it better.
Yes, exactly as every oak does. Tannins react with iron to form a blue black stain. Use brass or stainless fittings, keep steel wool away, and do not leave steel clamp bars in contact with a damp glue-up.
| 10.0 % |
| Ritiro volumetricoVariazione totale del volume dal legno verde a quello anidro. Un valore più basso indica maggiore stabilità. | 16.0 % |
|---|
| Durabilità naturale (EN 350)Norma europea per la resistenza naturale al deterioramento, da 1 (molto durevole) a 5 (non durevole). | Class 2 — Durable |
|---|
Tocca un’etichetta per i dettagli.
Durezza Janka: 5340 N
7 % più duro della quercia europea
720 kg/m³
Ritiro volumetrico 16,0 %
3,7 / 5 media di lavorazione
Classe EN 350 2
Il prezzo attuale del legname di Turkey Oak in Europa, al metro cubo IVA esclusa. Tocca un prezzo per i dettagli.
Perché una tavola costa più di questo?
Questi sono prezzi del legname grezzo. Una tavola è il taglio migliore di un tronco, essiccato per almeno un anno e poi controllato e misurato pezzo per pezzo. Solo una piccola parte di ogni tronco diventa una tavola.
Fonte: KORENA Timber Index · Dati più recenti: 24 set 2026
Vedi tutti i prezzi regionali