The Year of the Oaks

[Native Hunter]

A delivery driver saw all these acorns in my yard and asked me if I knew how many years it took an oak to start bearing. It only took me 23 minutes to answer his question.

 

[Teeder]

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Our house is in a suburban development - not prime deer territory. Yet - last fall, I found deer droppings under our pin oak. I'm hoping the deer return to help clean up the acorn bounty this year too. Recently I found tracks of a very small deer under our Sugar Tyme crab apple too. Small woods patches around our area must be holding deer, and they've found our yard!!

Update:
I posted this bit of update news on another thread about acorns. A few evenings ago, my wife and I watched a doe in the yard of a neighbor across our street, walk over to our yard to feast on the pin oak acorns littering our yard. As it turns out, deer have been coming into our yard at night for the acorns, and they've also found the Sugar Tyme crab out back. Tracks tell the story, and wife's hostas and some flowers were also mowed off. End of flowering season, so she's OK with losing them to the deer.

That pin oak has had 7 different squirrels in it every day, dozens of blue jays, downy & red-bellied woodpeckers, robins, nuthatches, tufted titmice, cardinals, doves, and flickers in it. Cooper's hawks use it as a perch when scouting for unsuspecting feathered meals.

 

[Native Hunter]

Sawtooths still dropping on Halloween. Yes, the conventional wisdom is wrong.

 

[TreeDaddy]

A delivery driver saw all these acorns in my yard and asked me if I knew how many years it took an oak to start bearing. It only took me 23 minutes to answer his question.

View attachment 84633
View attachment 84636

If it takes you longer than 20 minutes to answer the question:"How long before an oak tree bears acorns?".....

.........you might be a habitat guy

bill

 

[Native Hunter]

Note - watching deer eat Sawtooth acorns on 11/13/25. They are bridging the gap between white oaks and red oaks.

 

[Teeder]

My sawtooth are recently gone. My best English still have a few.

Blacks still have some, too.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Our one son's yard looks like it's covered in gravel - but it's all black acorns. Crazy load this year - bushels on the ground - it's a big, old tree. Some still holding on the tree, too. I have 3 of his acorns sitting in front of me as I type this post.

 

[Native Hunter]

I cut some of the Sawtooth acorns open with a knife, and all were in good shape. I put a camera on the grove of trees to see how long the deer keep coming to them. This morning they ate for a long time. Last year I let a 150 go that was chasing does under that tree, but he hasn't rewarded me this year.

 

[bwoods11]

Sawtooths still dropping on Halloween. Yes, the conventional wisdom is wrong.

View attachment 84903

That’s interesting, I should try a few in Missouri!

 

[Native Hunter]

That’s interesting, I should try a few in Missouri!

Yes, I would plant some if I were you. Mine were producing within 7 years.

 

[TreesuitSC]

Hey Native, would it possible to convince you to part with some scionwood from that sawtooth?

All of mine are done dropping in September.

 

[Native Hunter]

Hey Native, would it possible to convince you to part with some scionwood from that sawtooth?

All of mine are done dropping in September.

I’m starting to believe it is the climate here rather than the strain of trees. If you don’t believe it ask Chat GPT a question about drop time for sawtooths relative to location in the US. I did that and it confirmed my suspicions.

The Response below:

Sawtooth oak (Quercus acutissima) acorns generally drop from late September through November in most parts of the U.S., depending on local climate and latitude. Here’s a regional breakdown:

• Southeast U.S. (e.g., Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina):
  Acorns usually begin dropping in late September to mid-October and are mostly gone by early November.
• Mid-South and lower Midwest (e.g., Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas):
  Drop tends to peak in mid- to late October, sometimes extending into early November.
• Mid-Atlantic and Northeast:
  Sawtooths drop a bit later, generally late October into mid-November

 

[TreesuitSC]

I’m starting to believe it is the climate here rather than the strain of trees. If you don’t believe it ask Chat GPT a question about drop time for sawtooths relative to location in the US. I did that and it confirmed my suspicions.

The Response below:

Sawtooth oak (Quercus acutissima) acorns generally drop from late September through November in most parts of the U.S., depending on local climate and latitude. Here’s a regional breakdown:

• Southeast U.S. (e.g., Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina):
  Acorns usually begin dropping in late September to mid-October and are mostly gone by early November.
• Mid-South and lower Midwest (e.g., Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas):
  Drop tends to peak in mid- to late October, sometimes extending into early November.
• Mid-Atlantic and Northeast:
  Sawtooths drop a bit later, generally late October into mid-November

That makes sense.

 

[TreeDaddy]

I’m starting to believe it is the climate here rather than the strain of trees. If you don’t believe it ask Chat GPT a question about drop time for sawtooths relative to location in the US. I did that and it confirmed my suspicions.

The Response below:

Sawtooth oak (Quercus acutissima) acorns generally drop from late September through November in most parts of the U.S., depending on local climate and latitude. Here’s a regional breakdown:

• Southeast U.S. (e.g., Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina):
  Acorns usually begin dropping in late September to mid-October and are mostly gone by early November.
• Mid-South and lower Midwest (e.g., Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas):
  Drop tends to peak in mid- to late October, sometimes extending into early November.
• Mid-Atlantic and Northeast:
  Sawtooths drop a bit later, generally late October into mid-November

Mine are gone by early October in east texas

Once they fall ,the tree drip line looks like a cattle pen


bill

 

[Teeder]

I have trees that make large acorns and trees that make smaller ones. The trees that drop the small ones are always later dropping.