When checking his trees I found that the acorns from the tree that had produced many were the size of marbles, while acorns from the tree that produced fewer were much larger. In a good year, a huge oak tree can drop up to 10,000 acorns. After much research, I came to the conclusion that trees, even those of the same species, are just like humans, we appear similar but are different.
There are two great groups of oaks: white oaks and red oaks. While the white oak group is distributed around the northern hemisphere, the red oak group is found only in North America. There are more than 300 species of oaks found throughout the world and approximately 90 species in North America. Of these, 16 species are native to Pennsylvania (seven in the white oak group and nine in the red oak group).
The red and white designations come from the general color of the bark of mature trees. Most often the leaves on trees from the red oak group have pointed lobes, while rounded lobes are generally found on leaves from the white oak group. There are also specific differences in the wood grain’s pores. The wood cells of the white oak trees are coated inside with a plastic-like substance known as tyloses, which water-proofs the wood. In earlier times, the white oak’s wood was used use in making barrels, buckets and ships. On the afternoon of August 19, 1812, a mortal combat took place 750 miles off the coast of Massachusetts between the USS Constitution and the Guerriere, the British frigate. At barely fifty yards apart, each ship fired cannons point-blank into its opponent. The barrage from the British frigate seemed to be having little effect because its cannon balls bounced off the Constitution’s rugged white oak sides as if the ship was made of iron. It was from this battle that the Constitution’s nickname of “Old Ironsides” was born.
We do know that acorns are a food source for many species of wildlife. Squirrels not only devour acorns but also bury the nuts to eat later. The gray squirrel fails to find all of its buried acorns, which aid the oaks in regeneration and dispersal.
In 1,500 feeding studies, scientists collected data on whether the acorn was eaten or stored; the distance it was dispersed and also the amount of time the animal took to eat or bury the acorn. The study showed that 85% of white oak acorns were eaten shortly after discovery, while 60% of red acorns were stored. In another experiment, researchers attached small metal tags to acorns, and after the acorns were dispersed by the animals, metal detectors were used to recover the nuts. Again the results were the same, with the red oak acorns widely dispersed, while the white oak acorns more likely found close to the parent tree. This study, which was done to understand forest regeneration, suggested that red oaks will be the first oaks growing in a new forest.
In one study where 15,000 acorns were tracked, 83% were eaten by animals; 6% were attacked by insects; 10% were naturally imperfect and less than 1% sprouted. Of those that sprouted, half died as seedlings. Add to this the fact that a young oak tree does not start producing acorns until it is at least ten years of age. So, it's almost a miracle that we have any oak trees in the woods. Oak trees, which are known as the Methuselah's of the East, can take up to a century to reach their full maturity and can live to be 400 years old. The first two years of growth is concentrated mostly in the development of the root system.
Acorns belonging to the red oak group take two growing seasons to mature; while acorns in the white oak group mature in one season. White oak acorns usually sprout soon after falling to the ground in autumn. Red oak acorns lie dormant during the winter months and sprout in the spring. Wild animals prefer eating the acorns of the white oak to those of the red oak acorns. The white oak acorns are less fatty, sweeter and lower in tannin, which is the compound used to tan hides; the red oak acorns are rich in fats but contain more of this tannin that makes them bitter.