The Forestry Forum

Can you all stand another acorn thread. Don't laugh, from Connecticut land of the mighty oaks, someone once told me that certain species of oak acorns mature every two years while others mature and fall every year. Last year was the largest crop of acorns I have ever seen, this year not nearly as much. Any experts out there? Thanks  glenn....

Most acorns mature for 2 seasons before falling off the tree to become a baby oak...or squirrel chow.

See Harlow et al. 1996. Textbook of Dendrology. McGraw-Hill. p. 310

I was doing some reading and read that whole oak groves have good and bad years together.  

This is to make sure the squirells don't eat all of the acorns every year.  The bad year makes the squirell population drop and then next year the trees produce their maximum so some of the acorns get left alone and sprout.  Kinda neat eh :)

Ian

To add to what has been said, red oaks going by my tree book do acorns every two years.

Thanks to all for the input, I guess I am going to have a very bad year next year. glenn

Red oak acorns take 2 seasons to develop. Red oaks are the ones with the pointed tips on the leaves. If you look at squirrel cuttings in september you can usually find tiny acorns on the branches that will mature the following season. The trees will not produce good crops of acorns every year. You may have 2 or 3 good years and then they will take a year off. Weather also plays a part. A hard freeze at the wrong time can destroy next years crop of red oak acorns. We have had several good crops in our area except for this year. This year there are none at all.

White oaks take one season to develop and are the oak trees with the rounded tips on the leaves. White oak acorns taste better and are usually eaten by wildlife as quick as they fall.