Alabama hugger: I can be such a jerk! I have thought about sending you a report many times, but for reasons I can't explain, or think of an excuse for, I never did. Sorry. You were so nice to send them. OK, I planted them in three groups of three each and gave them hardware cloth protection from critters. One of the sites had a deer kick away the protection, so voles or something got them. All the other six grew. The first year we had an extreme drought--according to the US Drought Monitor site--so I had to water and water them. The next year they started to grow and put out three flushes of growth. This year, for some reason they are sputtering a bit. They are 30 to 45 inches tall. I transplanted one from one of the groups of three to a new spot, and it is surviving fine with regular watering. Still too early to tell how they will ultimately do--we are so hot and dry here. Poaky: Yes, open grown chestnut oaks will often divide into several large ascending branches. Q. alba can do this also. But both usually have a good balanced structure and are resistant to storm damage. But white oak may have a somewhat better growth form than chestnut oak, at least some of the time. With young white oaks the trunk may seem to be developing more than one leader, but then after three or four years, one will assert dominance, and the others can grow into nicely high arching branches. It is good not to try to prune to "shape-up" white oaks too hastily. I have less experience with, and fewer observations of chestnut oaks growing in the open. They are virtually never planted as ornamental trees--a shame. Oh, something to remember about white oak--there is considerable genetic variation in all kinds of characteristics, including growth form. Here near where I live in Northern VA, there is a famous one on the grounds of Carter Hall--it has a spread of about 150 feet, and is only 75 feet tall. It has several very large low branches that just grow out and out and out. It is well over 5 feet in diameter. Amazing! Then right across the street, in front of an old stone Episcopal church is another very large old white oak. It is more or less in the open also, but is growing very erect and tall with its branches arching upwards. Anyone looking at these trees from a distance would never think they are both of the same species. But they are--trust me--both pure white oak, no hybridizing. Tom: Here is what I would say about Northern red oak: Chief of all the red oak group, and an outstanding tree. Next might be the Shummard, but northern red oaks are especially fine. And they produce the best wood for furniture of all the red oak group--a nicer and "cleaner" grain. And as for the cherry bark oak--I think one has been recorded as the tallest growing oak in the US. I can't remember right now, but something like 170 feet. --spruce

'Dorky' and 'love' go together very nicely. It's all good.

Nice picture- I'd like to tour that ship.

USDA Zone refers to temperature. Temperature is only one variable...humidity and rainfall are another matter entirely. There is a big difference between a Zone 9 in Louisiana and a Zone 9 in Arizona. Although if you water it enough that will usually fix most problems related to insufficient rain or humidity in a tree rated for Zone 9... You are in California? Have you considered the California native oaks, like Blue Oak (Quercus douglasii) or Coast Live Oak? Most trees happy in low humidity are dessert trees that will grow slowly. Most fast growing trees would require a fair amount of watering in most parts of California.