WHITE OAK

The white oak is one of the most important timber trees in the eastern half of the United States. The wood is heavy, tough and close grained, making it useful for furniture, floors, cabinet work, fences and fuel. In the olden days, it was valued for the shingles that could be sliced and used for roofing.

The gray-barked tree will grow in nearly any soil that is well drained; it commonly grows to a height of eighty to a hundred feet with a diameter ranging up to five feet in mature specimens. It is not a fast grower but is well rooted and, under ideal conditions, may live up to 600 years.

The flowers of the white oak are like fuzzy little caterpillars and can be up to three inches long. Delicate young leaves appear before the flowers. People in the South say, "When the leaves of a white oak are the size of a squirrel's ear, it's time to plant corn." When the leaves mature they are bright green and deeply divided into five to nine lobes shaped like blunt fingers.

The acorns mature in October and may be up to one and one fourth inches in length. They are a favorite food of squirrels, deer, chipmunks, blue jays, grackles and other kinds of wildlife. They once were prized for food by Indians and settlers who boiled them to remove the bitter taste.

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