white oaks

[sskybnd]

went to the 40 acre lease to day to look around, went through the bottom where the hard woods are and noticed there were white oaks on the ground, now it should be to early for them to start falling, but was wondering if the deer will eat them green or do they have turn brown first. was thinking maybe the wind and rain had coused them to fall, but theres still alot on the ground either way.

[BLH]

Have you had a recent, prolonged cold snap with overcast skies? If I remember correctly from a lot of Botany classes in college, a lot of mast plants (ie white oaks) are climate oriented. They may start to drop some of their acorns a little early because with early colder temps. comes a decrease in chemical activity in the plant triggering the drop. Weather fools them into "thinking" it's later in the season than it really is.

[gitcha_some]

Whatevers causing it, its a good thing because if you're hunting around white oaks right now you're seeing deer

[arrow32]

I've noticed some early dropping around the house here not sure if its a good or bad thing. But I'd much rather it hold off.

[Tominator]

According to my buddy that grows oaks, sometimes they drop early when they are infested with worms. Hopefully that's not the case for you.

[Straight Shooter]

Chestnut Oaks were falling like rain drops last week and deer were all over them. The white oaks, squirrels wer cutting them like crazy but deer weren't on them yet.

[dawgitall]

White Oaks have always been my favorites and the most productive. Most of my life I hunted in middle GA and acorns were the number 1 food source in the fall. If storms came through and they fell a little early I would hunt them even when they were green. When the deer realize they are falling they will be vistiting every day. Although, we did not have any crops fro them to eat. That may change everything.

If the white oaks just fall early without storms the trees may not be that healthy and the acorn crop may be poor.

Edited September 27, 2009 by dawgitall

[redkneck]

I've given up trying to figure them out bud. This year at our camp, I got nada for acorns, but it's mostly covered in swamp chestnuts and swamp white oak. Back home about 40 miles south, the white oaks look good and already dropping, post oaks loaded up, and red oaks and water oaks have sagging limbs weighted down with acorns. I just keep on each year till I find them, luckily this year I did, I dont have a crop field to hunt, and it's been too wet this year for planting so far.

I will say this. One of the best sounds in life is that crunching of a white oak acorn as deer start moving in on you. Music to my ears.