I planted 5 coffee cups with an acorn in each in late October.I used a mixture of native soil and horse manure and watered them once a week and their growing well.One of them is 6 inches already with 4 leaves and three more are about 4 inches and one is 2 inches.These are white oaks I believe.Also planted 2 more acorns which I believe to be red oaks and they havent come up at all.Does any body have any expierience with growing Oaks and any tips or advice? Mike

1. Drop acorns on ground.
2. Wait 30 years.

A forester told me that a oak tree will sprout then look dead sometimes even loosing the srout then it will shoot up again. It will do this a couple of times. So if it does this dont throw it out it should grow back. Good luck Taxidermy Man

Correct taxidermy guy, such periods of inactivity have appeared to coincide with the accumulation of white precipitation on the ground. The indians, wise in the ways of such matters called those periods of time when plants looked dead and refused to grow, VANTERTYEME, or in the modern tongue, WINTERTIME and instinctively realized that even though plants may appear dead when covered with snow during the months of dec-march they may in fact be very much alive. Thanks for pointing this important yet not commonly known fact out.

HAHAHA. Couldn't resist tax man.

Mike don't know about oak trees, but I do grow alot of other indoor plants from seed and cuttings. Only thing I can say is try and move them out of the coffee cups and into something with very good drainage.
Also don't water to often and wait till dirt gets dry before watering again. Biggest
killer of all the new plants is fungus, mold etc and they like water.Also leaves turning yellow can indicate over watering. Most common problem with all new plant growers is overwatering which then leads to everything else. Good luck.

I work for a soil and water conservation district in NY and most districts have a tree sale in the spring where you can buy oak seedlings (3 years old or so) which are 10"-18" in height. I know the acorn thing is fun/neat, but getting the seedlings give you a "jump start" with less "work". The seelings generally cost $1/.

My dad has planted 250 white oak and about 200 red oak trees on our property in the last 10 years. He grew them from acorns in pots in the house. He kept them in the house on the window sill until they were about a year old and a couple feet tall. Then he planted them and put chicken wire around them. For the first summer he would go around every weekend and water them, too. The first one he planted (1994) is now about 12 feet tall. Most of the trees made and are healthy. He gets the acorns from Valley Forge Park. My dad's 73, too. Where does he get the energy? If you have any questions about this, I can get you answers. That's why we call our camp "White Oak Lodge".

Scott Meier
White Oak Lodge

Guys,thanks for the tips and replies.I figure if I learn how to plant these successfuly I can give back something to the Deer,Turkeys,squirrels,etc.Im in the middle of trying to buy a property I found and visualize where i would like to plant Oaks,food plots,etc.To me this opens the door to more than just harvesting a Deer,I try to tell people who dont hunt its not just harvesting a deer that matters to me,its helping the rest of the herd survive,especially in the winter when they need it most. Mike

This is interesting because I felt like doing the exact same thing. Apparently, there are no oak trees near my home. I did pick up 1 oak from my brothers home on Long Island and it's in a pot in my basement window. I will be looking to get more oak trees in the spring. Instead of being called Johnny Appleseed they can call me Tommy Oaktree.

T