Fertilizer for oak trees

[Ohio Bowhunter75]

Any recommendations for a good fertilizer for saw tooth oak trees.

[Russ otten]

Triple 10 or 13 should work OK. Use 1 pound per inch of tree diameter. Spread out to the drip line. There's a few on this site that have planted them. I have none in my area. Maybe they will catch this post and give you more specifics. Would suggest to go a little lighter if you just have 3X13. Old timers around here say that trees need a little iron in the soil. Old rusty nails placed in a little ditch will sork.

Russ

[Ohio Bowhunter75]

Thanks,I was thinking it was triple 10.They are getting pretty tall now and should start to produce nuts over the next year or two.I thought I would give them a boost.

[TURKEY FAN]

Great idea!!!!!!! This will make all the difference to the deer believe it or not, they will prefer that tree, to the other white oaks in the area, good luck and god bless.

[ostdc]

There was an article in a recent Quality Whitetails magazine that essentially said don't bother fertilizing oaks. You are far better off fertilizing your food plots.
I think that if it gives even a slight advantage, do it.
Brian

[tazimna]

having planted literally thousands of trees(for both the state and for myself), I feel more important than adding any fertilizer, is keeping moisture levels adequate. If you look at the growth ring of a tree, you'll see some lines are big, some are small. This is due to good moisture years and bad moisture years. For the most part trees can get enough nutrients out of their soil without adding any(unless you live in very sandy soil). One would do better to ensure moisture levels were good to get best/fastest growth. With acorn producing oaks, you can see the difference in dry years and wet years. It takes alot of moisture to get acorns much less any fruit to develop. Take a 55 gallon barrel filled with water to your trees once a month to ensure good moisture. A trick to help water is to take a few gallon jug, fill and tip over so the nozzle end is in the soil. This allows a slow drain of the water and lets you leave instead of staying around till water is gone. Taz

[Ohio Bowhunter75]

Great tips guys.I set up a 200 gallon water tank that gets the over flow from my natural spring.This way I can water when the rain has been slow.I thought I would give then a little fertilizer just for the extra boost.The oaks are also planted in the middle of a biologic food plot.I plan to clear more area this winter and double the size of my plot.I needed to fertilize the plot again before winter any way.

[etw]

DON'T FERTILIZE MAST TREES IN FALL. Each spring, a selected group of trees should be fertilized. Begin by raking the debris from the base to the drip line. Then apply a medium dosage of 10-10-10 to 15-15-15, slow release fertilizer. Begin a couple feet from the base, it should be spread evenly around the entire tree and out to the drip line. In northern settings, fertilizing in late summer or fall can actually do more harm than good. This burst of fertility can prompt trees to spur new growth too late into the fall. The result can be frost damage to this tender growth and provide unnecessary stress. (quoted from Steve Bartylla-Habitat Improvement Vol. #3)