Oak Woodlands
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Planting Oaks- Restoration
Source: Johnson, Sharon G. 1991. Living amont the oaks: a managemetn guide for landowners. University of California, Cooperative Extension. Natural Resources Program. Copies might be obtained from 163 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720 (510) 642-2360 if state funding allows.
Propagation
and Planting Propagation and planting are rewarding ways to speed
up nature s processes, beautify your home site, or even enhance the woodland
on more remote parts your property. Your investment for propagation activities
can vary according to the time and money you wish to spend. Both simple
and elaborate efforts have proved successful. Site factors such as soil
moisture, predators, weather, and luck are important in propagation success,
and these are often hard to evaluate.
Seed and seedling sources. Regardless of whether you
are planting acorns you collect or seedlings raised elsewhere (at native
plant nurseries, youth groups, or service clubs, for example), an effort
should he made to use local seeds for all wildland planting. Local ecotypes,
or strains of species, have evolved in response to local conditions and
are therefore best adapted for survival.
Collecting acorns. Most acorns ripen from late October
to early November, with seeds on the lower branches ripening first. Use
tools, such as long-handled loppers, sticks to knock them down. Fully
mature acorns will dislodge easier than green ones, but birds, deer, and
insects will quickly take their toll if acorns are not collected soon
after ripening. The biggest acorns are usually best. Test by soaking them
in a pail of water, keeping only sinkers. Acorns that float often have
been damaged by insects or have not matured properly But if acorns were
collected off the ground where they may have dried out, soak them longer—up
to 24 hours—before discarding floaters.
Storing acorns. Acorns may lie stored up to six months
without significant loss in viability if they are kept cool and not allowed
to dry out. Place them in peat or saw dust within polyethylene bags, in
an environment with temperatures around 40 degrees Fahrenheit, such as
in a refrigerator. Polyethylene bags with a wall thickness of four to
ten mils are ideal for storing acorns since they are permeable to carbon
dioxide and oxygen hut impermeable to moisture—two factors that
help maintain acorn viability.
Preparation for planting. Float the acorns again, and
select the sinkers.
Planting directly in the field. Direct planting of acorns eliminates
the root disturbance that occurs with transplanting and allows maximum
root development. Methods for planting vary tremendously, so feel free
to experiment.
Select a site
with good drainage. Plant in the late fall or early winter when
acorns will be well-watered by the rains. Dig a hole ten inches in diameter
and four to five inches deep. break apart hard or compacted soil with
a shovel. Place one gram of nitrogen fertilizer in the bottom of the hole
and replace the soil, tamping it down and leaving a one to three inch
depression at the top. Remove acorn caps and place six to ten acorns,
tips down or sideways, in the hole. Cover with remaining material and
tamp down. Use some protective device (see illustration) to exclude both
above and below-ground predators. Weed when necessary. Using a black plastic
weed cloth, about 4’ around each tree, will reduce weeds and improve
survivorship. Do not put wood chips as mulch around seedlings because
during a wildland fire, the burning mulch will kill the seedling that
otherwise would have survived the fire. Thin seedlings to two or three
at the end of the first season and one by the third year.
If the site is on a steep slope, cut into
the hillside to create a pocket for the seed. Plant the acorns on the
lip of the pocket with the cut sloping slightly downward and deeper into
the hillside (see illustration of exclosures-above). This acts to reduce
erosion and collect moisture for the seedling. It also keeps the seedling
out of the seasonally saturated soil at the hack of the cut. If acorns
are planted after heavy rains when soils are moist, watering is not needed.
Otherwise, water thoroughly after planting. Periodic watering during the
first several summers will increase seedling’s .survival. Good sites
may only need watering two or three times the first year but soil conditions
in poor or sandy soils will require Watering as often as once a week.
Always soak the soil thoroughly to stimulate root development, and allow
the surface to dry between watering. Taper off watering during the second
and third year.
Protection
from small mammals. (Click here for page of photos) Gophers dig
along underground and eventually find most oak seedlings. To protect from
underground rodents, place the acorns in wire baskets, made from 1/4"
or 1/2" galvanized "hardware cloth". Make the basket about
2 gallons in size. Have it extend about 6" above ground. Or, use
a window screen cover that can later be opened. For most plantings, the
trees will do best if in a tree tube. Tree tubes are available from many
vendors. We have used tubes from TreeEssentials, but there are many other
vendors. Buy the 5' tubes. The wood stakes they provide will rot long
before your tree is big enought to escape the top. So, install at least
one steel "t" post and use the UV-resistant pull-ties to hold
the tube up. Cattle, feral pigs, and horses will all try to rub against
the post, so you may want to install a steel "t" post on each
side of the tube. Install a wire screen over the top of the tube, as bluebirds
and many other small birds get trapped by falling down the tubes. Beats
me- you would think birds would not be so easily trapped. But like toddlers
falling into buckets and drowning, birds fall into tubes. When the tree
leaves and branches emerge from the top, remove the cover. Keep the tube
and wire around the base of the tree for 7-8 years. We have lost many
saplings to voles (Microtus californicus) who chew the bark along the
bottom of the sapling and effectively girdle and kill the sapling.
Planting into cans. Plant acorns in loose potting soil
in one-gallon cans or deeper containers (because the tap root grows quickly
depth of containers, not width, is important). Containers should have
holes in the bottom to allow for drainage. Place acorns on their sides
at a depth of one half to one times the width of the acorn. Keep the soil
moist but aerated.
Transplanting. Seedling’s tap root can grow very
quickly. If it grows out of the container and into the soil below, and
you pull up the pot and break the tap root, most seedlings will die. If
possible, seedlings should lie transplanted as soon as the first leaves
open and become firm. before extensive root development occurs. Young
trees in containers should be transplanted in the- late winter or early
spring, after the ground has begun to warm and before the leaves of deciduous
trees begin to emerge. The hole should he twice as wide and deep as the
can. Thoroughly wet the root ball in the can. Carefully remove the root
hall. If roots have begun to curve around the inside of the container,
prune them to allow placement in the hole without bending or folding.
Prune a corresponding amount of foliage after transplanting. Gently set
the root ball in the hole with the root crown at the level of the soil
surface. Fill the hole with soil, firmly tamp and soak,
Watering transplanted oaks. Watering, weeding, and mulching
is important until the seedling is well established. If transplanting
is done during the fall or winter, normal rains should he adequate until
the dry season. For the first season, thoroughly soak seedlings so that
water deeply penetrates the soil every two weeks or whenever the top two
inches of soil is dry. Taper off as trees become established; many plantings
are successful with only several supplemental waterings during the first
season. If the transplant is to live in an irrigated environment make
sure the area around the root crown is adequately drained.