dogghr
Well-Known Member
Another thread on chill times for fruit production got me thinking of the acorn and its requirements. I watched a squirrel while I was on stand last fall, spend several hours chasing down acorns, and coming back to bury them relentlessly in a 3 foot bare dirt circle he had created. He planted each in seconds and in a very specific method and depth. I wondered how the hundreds of squirrels doing the same were affecting the growth of Oaks for years, decades, perhaps centuries to come.
With acres of oak trees, I tend to take them for granted, unless there is a mast failure. If you follow my thread at all you know I tend to manage as much for a mature timber stand as an early successional stage, trying to balance the two.
I've read a lot of published papers on the subject and each has its merits, but one has to be careful as certain industries can influence the apparent results sometimes. Timber is big business in my state and I have good friends in the industry. I learn a lot from them and they have my utmost respect. But we don't always agree.
So here are but a few things I gleaned from one paper in particular. I'll try to post its link if I can fig out how.
I answered Gallow a question he posed and guesstimated I had 100 mature oaks/ ac. Turns out that is indeed an average. I also said I think my deer could be fed well with 3 mature oaks/ ac. An ac of oaks produces about 250000 acorns. I have 80 ac of them, red, white, black, chestnut, etc. That's a bunch.
All oaks bloom each year with male and female flowers, thus they need no other tree for pollination. Whites produce the acorn, which is the oaks fruit, each year from pollinated flowers. A red oak, produces same flowers, but it requires two years of maturity for that fruit to drop. Indeed the red can have different stages of acorn maturity each year, thus they can drop acorns each year, while hanging on to the immature fruit till the following year.
While we tend to blame late freezes on poor acorn crops, in reality, a high humidity, or heavy rains, or temp variations can easily affect pollination. And not all the flowers on the tree are pollinated, so presence of flowers means nothing in assuming future fall crop.
Less fruit production, means tree puts more of its energy toward growth, hence interest of logging industry of preventing pollination.
Oak trees of similar crowns, will produce same amount of acorns whether it be in open or closed canopy. Releasing competing trees, allow the crown to enlarge, thus increasing mast production.
Oaks can need to be 30+ years old to produce maximum acorn production and some trees are just more genetically proficient to produce acorns.
Early ovule development begins within 1 month after pollination in Lepidobalanus/Whites, and 13 months in Erythrobalanus/reds.
Greatest loss of fruit is from natural abscission , regardless of tree size.
So ponder these thoughts as you troll along the majestic oaks of your land. Spring is not far away, pay attention to those trees, their crowns, their placements, their variety as they begin or continue their fruit production for you habitats many animals.
Next time we shall look at how the lowly acorn goest thru the processes of making your mature oak forests and even how you can improve acorn plantings.
With acres of oak trees, I tend to take them for granted, unless there is a mast failure. If you follow my thread at all you know I tend to manage as much for a mature timber stand as an early successional stage, trying to balance the two.
I've read a lot of published papers on the subject and each has its merits, but one has to be careful as certain industries can influence the apparent results sometimes. Timber is big business in my state and I have good friends in the industry. I learn a lot from them and they have my utmost respect. But we don't always agree.
So here are but a few things I gleaned from one paper in particular. I'll try to post its link if I can fig out how.
I answered Gallow a question he posed and guesstimated I had 100 mature oaks/ ac. Turns out that is indeed an average. I also said I think my deer could be fed well with 3 mature oaks/ ac. An ac of oaks produces about 250000 acorns. I have 80 ac of them, red, white, black, chestnut, etc. That's a bunch.
All oaks bloom each year with male and female flowers, thus they need no other tree for pollination. Whites produce the acorn, which is the oaks fruit, each year from pollinated flowers. A red oak, produces same flowers, but it requires two years of maturity for that fruit to drop. Indeed the red can have different stages of acorn maturity each year, thus they can drop acorns each year, while hanging on to the immature fruit till the following year.
While we tend to blame late freezes on poor acorn crops, in reality, a high humidity, or heavy rains, or temp variations can easily affect pollination. And not all the flowers on the tree are pollinated, so presence of flowers means nothing in assuming future fall crop.
Less fruit production, means tree puts more of its energy toward growth, hence interest of logging industry of preventing pollination.
Oak trees of similar crowns, will produce same amount of acorns whether it be in open or closed canopy. Releasing competing trees, allow the crown to enlarge, thus increasing mast production.
Oaks can need to be 30+ years old to produce maximum acorn production and some trees are just more genetically proficient to produce acorns.
Early ovule development begins within 1 month after pollination in Lepidobalanus/Whites, and 13 months in Erythrobalanus/reds.
Greatest loss of fruit is from natural abscission , regardless of tree size.
So ponder these thoughts as you troll along the majestic oaks of your land. Spring is not far away, pay attention to those trees, their crowns, their placements, their variety as they begin or continue their fruit production for you habitats many animals.
Next time we shall look at how the lowly acorn goest thru the processes of making your mature oak forests and even how you can improve acorn plantings.
. My 13-14 yr old cherrybarks are beautiful trees, but no acorns yet.
