Sawtooth Oaks

[Hoseman]

Like LLC said, was it last spring that got them? Exceptional drought by chance? Thats a pretty late freeze, but it can happen. Ive not seen it here yet.

I would guess that it was the whacky weather in February that jacked them up. We had several days in the 80's and most of the month was in the 60's & 70's in February. Then we had some sporadic cold weather in March & April. These trees have produced every year and have seen some other strange early warm weather that did not affect them in previous years. We had plenty of moisture this spring and summer. Just seems very odd because sawtooths are tough as nails. Our farmer planted our farm in cotton this year along with the adjacent farm so I was really hoping the sawtooths would be the ticket for early bow season. I guess we are going to have to hope that our plots do well this year if we can ever get some rain so that we can plant.

 

[lakngolf]

My 11 yr old trees have produced since year 6 except for one year. Don't know why but loaded again last year and this

 

[Fish]

First, I'm happy to have a free moment to update some threads on this forum!
Sawooth oaks! My goodness what a year of acorns.










I have 4 groves of sawtooths on the Home 10. I'm adding groves to Little Blue every year. One grove is along the driveway and I am in the process of opening up the canopies somewhat. Acorn production here isn't of great importance because of location.






Then there are other locations on the property where I am opening up the trees to sunlight. In some places, I favor a native oak. But I want to keep the grove intact if I can and pines and junk trees are cut away. You can see the smaller sawtooth "bushes" where I thinned the row of trees and they have regrown from the stump. This grove produces a mind boggling number of acorns.




A few trees are still hanging. I know these guys too. I have propagated from them in years past.





This one just drops late.
This one is my BurSawtooth oak. It looks much like a bur oak acorn and doesn't fall until late October.
Any day now really. Which puts it in the late October time frame as well.





A few still hanging.....





But guys, I have an absolute boat load on the ground right now. Deer are here with sightings most every other day from the kitchen window. The amount of food that a grove of sawtooths puts on the ground each fall continues to amaze me. I can't even see where insects bother them in the least. A nearby Bur Oak always has nut damage............





Not the lowly sawtooth! Timber tree? No. Tree to reforest with? Not necessarily. Tree to feed wildlife? You better believe it!

 

[Mark1427]

I have started one this year. Is it too early to put in its permanent spot?

 

[Fish]

I have started one this year. Is it too early to put in its permanent spot?

Is it in a garden type bed, or a pot?
Id be hesitant to dig one up and transplant just yet. Wait for a couple good frosts.
If potted, plant away. And dont forget to protect it with a fence or tube!

 

[j-bird]

Has anyone trained one into a shrub and still produce acorns?

 

[Mark1427]

Is it in a garden type bed, or a pot?
Id be hesitant to dig one up and transplant just yet. Wait for a couple good frosts.
If potted, plant away. And dont forget to protect it with a fence or tube!

I have them in root bags that I made. Thanks for the reply.

 

[chadmyers]

I try to keep some in pots every year. I’ll sell a few and plant some


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[chadmyers]

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[Fish]

View attachment 10147View attachment 10148
I try to keep some in pots every year. I’ll sell a few and plant some


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Nice! How old are those trees?

 

[Fish]

Has anyone trained one into a shrub and still produce acorns?

I would recommend against it jbird. They form terrible branch angles and fissure easily.

 

[THE LLC]

They do but they do make good screening as bushes--and they will produce acorns.

 

[j-bird]

I would recommend against it jbird. They form terrible branch angles and fissure easily.

I'm a ways away from even trying it at this point.....I was just curious as how best to proceed should the time come. I am sure eventually I'm going to deal with a damaged central leader and depending on the size at the time I was wondering if I'm better off just starting over or simply allowing it to be a shrub.

 

[j-bird]

They do but they do make good screening as bushes--and they will produce acorns.

Since I read that they really hold their leaves that was why I asked. I doubt I would do it intentionally, but may be an option if the situation comes up.

 

[catscratch]

Since I read that they really hold their leaves that was why I asked. I doubt I would do it intentionally, but may be an option if the situation comes up.

We have several that are in shrub form. I don't know that any have produced or if they ever will produce, but they do hold leaves and make good winter cover.

 

[Fish]

Since I read that they really hold their leaves that was why I asked. I doubt I would do it intentionally, but may be an option if the situation comes up.

Ok then yes, as a "bush", they make a great screen. I will have some pics of my cut stumps this winter. And i think that is a great use of sawtooths.

 

[The Bruce]

I planted ten or more sawtooths for a little diversity. My nrcs guy told me they are invasive??? Anyone have an opinion on this?

 

[THE LLC]

My opinion is the NRCS guy is a ding dong. Believe me it’s not. I wish it was, rather have them everywhere instead of dang sweet gums.

 

[catscratch]

I planted ten or more sawtooths for a little diversity. My nrcs guy told me they are invasive??? Anyone have an opinion on this?

I talked with a couple of the state's biologist this summer and asked if the state forestry service stopped selling them because they were invasive. They said they didn't know they were invasive and that the state had gone to selling natives only so the sawtooth had been taken off the list.
My dad has several that have produced for yrs. We don't have a single one growing on the place that we didn't plant. It's certainly not something I'm worried about anymore but they may grow differently in your part of the world.

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[Oakseeds]

I suspect the concern is that if they become widely established, they may become a problem in some areas .. so far they appear to be OK
www.dnr.wi.gov/topic/Invasives/fact/SawtoothOak.html
www.invasiveplantatlas.org/subject.html?sub=10086
www.nps.gov/cue/epmt/products/Quercus acutissima 2012 NCREPMT.pdf
www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publication/?seqNo115=143169&pf=1
www.invasive.org/browse/subthumb.cfm?sub=10086
The USDA piece is interesting.
P.S. the Invasive.Org says ... Ecological Threat... "Quercus acutissima has been found in recent years to escape plantings and establish in nearby forests, potentially displacing native vegetation. It is native to Asia and has been widely planted in the United States as an ornamental and as food for wildlife. It is no longer recommended for planting in the United States because of its potential impact on native ecosystems."