Acorn question

[Recurve50LBS]

I've read a lot about how much deer prefer acorns from white oak trees over acorns from red oaks. What color are the acorns from white oaks? Red oaks? Seems around here they come in 2 colors, brown and light green. I have no clue. Can any one help me out?

[Jerry Jeffer]

If the light green ones are small, they could be white oak. There are so many kinds of oak out there. Pretty much have to see what tree is dropping which acorn.

[Recurve50LBS]

The green ones vary in size. I can't tell one tree from another. I was never a boy scout....lol

[Recurve50LBS]

I forgot to add that the brown acorns vary in size too. But the majority of green and browns are about the size of a quarter or larger.

[BOFF]

Here's a link to white oak:

 http://www.oplin.lib.oh.us/tree/fact%20pages/oak_white/oak_white.html

Red oak:

 http://www.oplin.org/tree/fact%20pages/oak_red/oak_red.html

[Talondale]

The easiest way to remember is that oaks of the white oak family have rounded lobes (ends of leaves) regardless of their shape.  Red oaks all have pointed leaves.  The bark tends to be rougher on white oaks as well.

I think the green vs. brown has more to due with falling early or fallng when ripe.

[Osagetree]

Chuck you beat me to it.

But mine had a lesson to help remember which was which;

 White oaks have rounded leaves like the white mans bullets, and the red oaks have pointed leaves are like the red mans arrows.

[Recurve50LBS]

Thank you this may just help me out with where to set up in the woods.

[adeeden]

osagetree thats the same thing I remember my dad telling me 30 years ago!

[Orion]

Yep, leaves and bark are the best way to tell them apart.  However, I believe the red oaks have a rougher, more deeply fissured bark pattern than the whites.  Remembe what treebark camo looked like when it first came out?  Pretty much looks like white oak, though the pattern is darker and larger than on most trees.

[Richie Nell]

Typically the red oak family trees begin falling first and last longer due to having small acorns and more of them.  The white oak family trees usually have larger acorns and begin falling 3-4 weeks after the red oaks.  

If the acorns you see are green then they are falling prematurely due to wind, squirrels, etc. When they are mature and fall on time the red oaks are light brown to dark brown.  The white oaks are dark brown to very dark purple.  The true white oak, (quercus alba), is very dark when mature.  In the south I call it purple rain.  That is the time to be hunting.

Some of the red oaks, such as water, willow, laurel and swamp laurel have very small thin short leaves.  Others such as shumard, pin, southern red, northern red, turkey, blackjack, etc. have large broad leaves with pointed fingers.

Most all white oaks except live oak have broad leaves with rounded fingers.

Deer love the red oaks but will walk past a red oak to get to a white oak due to less tanic acid in the white oak, hence "white".  

Sorry for the rant but I love this stuff.

Richie

[Richie Nell]

But more important than the oaks is the persimmon tree.  If you can find a female persimmon with fruit you better be there opening day.  This is much more preferred than any oak.