Oak Woodlands
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in Mature Trees
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Moss"
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to Oak Species
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Climate Change
Planting Oaks- Restoration
Sources:
McCreary, D. D. 2001. Regenerating Rangeland Oaks in California. Publication 21601, UC Ag. and Natural Resources. 62pp. A great booklet with many drawings, references, etc. You can order a copy: write or call: Communication Services, 6701 San Pablo Ave. Oakland, CA 94608-1239. 800 888994-8849. danrcs@ucdavis.edu
Johnson,
Sharon G. 1991. Living Among the Oaks:
a Management 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.
Integrated
Hardwood and Range Management Program: Restoration/Oak Planting On-Line
Leaflets, (This is a GREAT online resource- brought
to you by UC Extension)
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 be made to use local seeds for all wildland planting.
Local ecotypes, or local individuals of a species, include those trees
that have survived local conditions for millennia and many studies suggest
such "locals" have better survival and reproduction. If local
conditions are changing, there are those who argue that we should be
planting specie/ecotypess that some guess would do better in a changing
climate. You are planting an organism that could live 800 years, and
it is anyone's guess as to the plasticity of the oak phenotype. My
best hope is that they will survive. “The farmer has to be an
optimist or he wouldn't still be a farmer.”- Will Rogers.
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.