Oak Resprouts (Oak Grubs)

[Klunker]

Anyone have an idea on how many years Oaks, especially White Oak (Q. alba) will sprout after being top killed by fire?

I favor White Oaks in my property. I notice some seedlings in the open woods and the prairie. I burn both of these places pretty much annually. If White Oaks Resprout after fire and the root system gets larger every year I am thinking of after a couple of years the resprout may reach 1-2 ft in one season. At that point I'll fence around them to keep the locusts (deer) from chewing them down and I'll protect them from fire.

I don't want to fence and protect every seedling I find, just one thats in a good location.

Also obviously the ones growing in the prairie get alot more light. I suspect those respond better than ones in the open woods. But will the ones in the open woods last as long as the prairie ones?

[BrandonTN]

Not sure exactly, but if you topkill them every year they wont grow their roots optimally, they get the growth from having leaves and photosyn. You also dont want to topkill them any more than necessary. Most important things are having light, surviving browse, and minimal competition. If they have all that and they arent older stagnant seedlings, they dont need to be topkilled any more. If they have competition burn every 3 yrs and quit as soon as competion is subdued.