some dwarf oaks

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I love the western oaks. 

Me too. I talked to Allan Taylor earlier this year and kind of whined about not having Quercus grisea, and when I visited his garden, he handed me a very nice one, a couple feet tall.
I also have one of his, from acorns, from collections in SW Colorado, NE New Mexico, and the Oklahoma panhandle, labeled "Short Pants". I asked him, "Short Pants?  Is this a town in Oklahoma or something? As in, 'I"m the sheriff here, and we don't cotton much to strangers in Short Pants.'"
Didn't get much of a response. I realized later that maybe it was, maybe, short plants.
His garden is pretty stunning, and, even though he doesn't know it, I consider it the model Colorado garden. Desert plants and rhododendrons.

Most, if not all, of these oaks seem to be strongly mycorrhizal and prefer growing in plain dirt with as much water as falls from the sky. Half a year with no rain at all, and they just keep growing.

Bob

Three pictures. First, taken in the front yard in the blindingly bright sun, shows two Quercus undulata, one "big", one little (in front,with a stake, it's hard to see).
Then, Q. turbinella. Last, Q. grisea. The last two are semi-semi-evergreen.
They're not really dwarf in the sense of being small enough to grow alongside Androsace mathildae, but a maximum of 3 meters, and they don't cast very much shade. They grow very slowly with just natural precipitation.

Bob