Why the big fruit? A few months ago, the most delightful lady purchased a set of felted acorns from Fairyfolk. bur oak Legal Status. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. See Collection. It is native to the central plains and the great lakes regions of North America. Stream bottoms, lower slopes, upland woods; usually in at least moderately drained places; in or near limestone areas; se and e TX w to West Cross Timbers and Edwards Plateau. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center adds more names to this list, including Savanna oak, overcup oak, prairie oak, mossy-overcup oak. See more ideas about burr oak, oak, north america. Finding the 220+ Tagged Trees in Fort Collins' City Park Arboretum. One author states burr oak acorns in Texas are golf-ball sized! These species produce acorns that are round or have a distinct color or shape: Bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa): The largest acorns on the continent, about 1.5 inches (4 cm) long with a very deep cupule that covers at least half of the nut Click on a place name to get a complete protected plant list for that location. Their odd cap, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, gives it one of its nicknames, “mossycup oak,” as it seems to some people that it has a top part made of moss. The Sibley Guide to Trees, 2009. If the tree is not doing well I would call your local extension office and ask if they have a tree person that could come take a look. Austrian Pine-The Salvation of the Dust Bowl? Models of climate change have predicted  bur oak may have an increase in its range, but the locations where it thrives may also shift. This white oak is native to much of the eastern and midwestern United States and Canada, although its characteristics vary depending on its location. Bur oak is native to the central and eastern US, including most of the middle swath of Texas, top to bottom. Bur oak information says that these native trees can live up to 300 years. Connecticut. The trees provide food to 96 or more species of wildlife, including black bears. Caps in the southern portion have long fringe hairs while others at the far north of its range are much smaller and barely have any shag at all. A unique mention is made of tree galls used to treat intestinal problems and as an antiseptic. Bigger than we're used to seeing relative to what we think of as lil' ol' acorns. Alternatively, it refers to the appearance of its acorns. Large tree; nuts and cups (3-6 cm wide) largest of all nc TX species. For example, its acorns are large in its southernmost growth area while they can be about a fifth the size in the northern regions. This time we feature the crazy, gargantuan, monster acorn caps from the bur oak tree (Quercus macrocarpa). You name it, somebody has likely brought it to BRIT for identification at some point (or emailed us a photo). Also known for their sweetness, the bur oak’s acorns feature a deep cup, and its distinguishing feature is a fringe on the margins of the cup. This fast-grower typically likes an open, limestone or chalky clay habitat and is adapted not only to fire and drought but also to extreme cold and flooding. So why the big cap? To add to the confusion, in certain terrains it can be referred to as scrub oak. This plant is also called mossycup oak and mossycup white oak . This doesn't exactly explain why individual bur oak acorns are BIGGER than acorns from other oak species, but the evolutionary advantages of any large-fruited plant are somewhat related to the idea of masting: fruit/seed predators are given more than they can possibly consume in total, hopefully leaving some fruit and seeds intact to germinate and contribute to the next generation. Bur Oak is a pioneer species at the forest edge and will invade prairies along with Northern Pin Oak. Rodney Dunn. If you do decide to start planting a bur oak, site the tree in full direct sun. A few days later, a package arrived in the mail and, inside, I found the hugest acorn caps I had ever seen. It is in the white oak group. bur oak. The acorns of bur oak are the largest of all the native oaks. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Other Oaks. Identify other acorns of the region. You can find it in the prairies and savannas as well as along waterways. This specimen is a bit over 107 feet tall and has a trunk circumference of more than 278 inches. The wood is sometimes marketed as ‚white oak.™ Native Americans made a bark decoction with astringent properties used to treat diarrhea, wounds ( Log Out /  The bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) is a white oak that doesn't produce its first acorns until it is 35 years old. Species in the white oak group include bur, chinkapin, swamp white and white oaks. The acorns will ripen by the middle of autumn. Warnings Bur oaks are susceptible to oak wilt, a … Cattle and other livestock may ingest seedlings and acorns even though this material may prove poisonous in large quantities. also called Mossycup Oak, is in the white oak group and is easily identified by the corky ridges on its young branches, deeply furrowed bark and acorns with knobby-scaled caps (cupules) with a fringed edge. Bur oak acorns from Texas sources can be 1-1/2 to 2 inches long. Shop Acorns. The bur oak acorn is also a beautiful addition to a wreath, garland, swag or cornucopia. These bur oak acorns are a unique soft gray to brown, and make a lovely addition to floral arrangements. I mean, LOOK at the size of these things! Usually, the cup covers about half of the nut, but occasionally, the cup will be so large that only the tip of the nut sticks out of the fringe. Blue jays, deer, squirrels, and other small mammals eat the acorns, and the acorns taste better to wildlife than those from red oaks because they contain less tannin making them less bitter. Wildlife takes advantage of these acorns as a source of food. The shagginess and the size of the cap are the reason for one of the tree's other common names: mossy-cup oak. The frilled acorns of the burr oak can grow to as long as 2 inches in parts of this tree's southern range, with those in northern states not attaining quite those lengths. https://doi.org/10.1016/0169-5347(94)90310-7. Most sources state the trees can live 300 to 400 years. So keep bringing us your weird and wonderful treasures! If you point to the east at a diagonal from the box, you should be in line with the tree. The bur oak is sometimes called mossy cup oak, a name that refers to the fringe around the edge of the acorn cup. Sticks, leaves, flowers, fruit, fungi, lichens, moss. the burr oak has some of the largest acorns out of all of the oak species.