Dax - Where is the balance between drying out too much and not enough? How long are you drying them on the racks? I'm probably more worried about "too much" based on past experience.

I start off with two weeks.

Dax

The way most people around here are, they'll probably b***h and moan about all the acorns they're gonna have to clean up and say "you can take all you want, so I don't have to deal with it".

Two weeks? Wow, that's a lot longer than I expected. I guess I'm used to purchased acorns that have already been through the wringer and can dry out to non-viable in a matter of a few days. I'll stop by tonight to see if I can get the homeowner, and see how the nuts look.

I've also heard that once a few drop off on their own (or if you poke the branch with a stick), that it's a good time to get them.

The tree is about as wide as it is tall, but has a low enough canopy, so at least some branches are low enough I could reach them. I could get bucketfuls just from the branches I can reach from the ground, and the tree is a good 75' by 75' or so.

its how i got most of my lilacs and many iris ...

gardens will love the attention ... the uninitiated are usually amused...

the alternative is a note in the mailbox ...

never had anyone be rude ... or tell me no ...

ken

Here are some after being dried. Dax

Since I normally store mine overwinter in the fridge (even whites), I want them moist enough to live, but dry enough that they don't try to sprout TOO fast. I've had success keeping them in ziplocs, at the bottom of the fridge where it's as close to 32F as possible for several months, taking them out in March/April. Often they are "cracked" but the radicles haven't emerged, but sprout readily at that point.

I'll try your method, Dax. Thanks! Those look better than the acorns I buy from Schumacher or Sheffield's. Fresher.

So basically, the drying process is akin to letting a peach ripen after it's picked off the tree...that this is the same thing that would happen if the acorns were still attached, but minus the weevils?

If some one came to my door and asked if they could have acorns from my oak, the answer would be obvious. "How many bushels do you want?"

Would you like some Gum Balls?

Yeah, I don't see why anyone would say no to your asking for acorns.

I wish someone would ask for mine!

Hair: yep. and inside that bag up there I'll see tiny water droplets about 1-3" up from the bottom of the bag. That's when I know they're perfectly dried for cold storage.

Dax

krnuttle, I can walk 100 feet out my door and collect thousands of Sweet Gum balls and Sugar Maple seeds.

Try a note taped to their door..."I drive by your lovely tree each day on the way to work and would like some acorns from it when they are ready. I dropped in last night (or whenever) and no one was home....."

They could be on vacation, but the note is a good idea. People tend to be outside on weekends, so maybe you'll catch them today or tomorrow.

I don't know the effects of your prolonged zone 7 growing season, but, I collected those QB acorns the date on the bag and this is what I came home with to begin drying.

Take in mind you'll find acorns with a hole bored into them and I simply toss those. The difference is like night and day vs. picking them up off of the ground, however.

And you will need to squish a few critters crawling around in the bag.

I would reiterate once again that when the cap can be pulled off a green acorn without destroying the acorn, then it's the perfect time.

Dax

I think they would love it if you stopped by and asked them. I know if somebody stopped and asked me, it would definitely make my day, or even my week!

Worst case, you knock on the door and it gets aswered by an enormous squirrel.

+oM

Hopefully it's a squirrel willing to share, haha...

I noticed today that there is an equally loaded Q. falcata in the backyard.

So a development. I spoke with a coworker who lives near this house. Apparently, this guy (the owner of the house above, not my coworker) is a well-known reclusive wacko type, and doesn't take kindly to solicitors...

Time to go midnight commando, black ops. ;)

I would try a note first, sometimes you get a very pleasant surprise. Notes give reclusive folks time to decide if they want to give you any acorns. You can leave your name and phone number on the note too, tell them you really like trees, all trees........ If they wish to be left alone, they might still mail you acorns or let you pick some. Worth a try. A knock on the door can be threatening to some who wish to be alone. A note is pretty low key.

I do it all the time, and I'm a 6'6" big scary looking guy with a beard to my chest. I'm amazed I haven't had the police called to check me out. I once had a biker family all come out and watch me take cuttings and divisions after I asked them. Turn into a education session and we had a blast. Only one time did I have guns pulled on me, my fault, I was trespassing. They were rough and tough rednecks and started laughing when I told them why I was in their pasture. I had spotted an 8 ft very blue Schizachyrium scoparium from the highway. Had to have a division! Take someone with you if that helps.

I will do whatever it takes to get a sample or seed of what makes me happy in life. I like the black ops idea from Debbie. I had a guy tell me no and he never wanted to see me on his property again! Okay jerk, I'll be back!!! So I planned it out for one Friday night to wake up at 2am and by 4am I was crawling out of his yard with my prize. Do what you gotta do!

Collected Q.bicolor yesterday and began manually removing the caps of the green ones and green/brown ones last night and, finished this morning. Not a weevil hole in sight... and, all are sinkers. I saved a few of the largest for myself to grow grafting rootstocks. I'll soak them for 24 hours and see if any weevils arise and then I'll begin drying and furthering their maturation.

The surplus I'll likely sell the majority... and even the caps will be sold to craft folks. I'll dry the caps, as well. Nothing goes wasted.

Dax

Dax

Just did that today actually, but the tree was not close to the house. It was right by the road. If you want Hair, I can grab a few more from the tree here, Q. Alba also. There are tons of green ones on the tree yet. poaky1 P.S. Dax, I posted the pics of the trees from you on a thread I posted awhile ago. You may have seen them already. If not, the pics are there. You likely already saw the pics, it was the Q. Libani, Pecan and Burr oak from the huge acorns you got. Poaky1

Hair, are Sugar Maple seeds falling/ripe now for you? There's a giant at my vets office, I was just there today too! I will be checking the vets office tree if you say yes, that they are fall seeders. poaky1

Where's that thread at Poaky? I haven't seen the trees, but would like to.

Dax

Okay Guys- Hair If you moved from Columbia, Md I'll need your new address. And Hair about how many 10-12, or more? Dax, I just bumped the post, and added individual click on pic links. Sorry i thought you could click on the Pecan, and then view the other pics in my library, with the Burr and Q. Libani also, but this is easier. There are many other trees in my library, likely a pain in the bazzooka to find those specific 2 other trees. Hope you can view the pics okay Daxman, and Hair, If you are still in Columbia, Md in the same house, I have your address then, and will send soon. Poaky1

Oh, Dax, if you want some Q. Alba I'll get you some too. Acorns. Poaky1

Yep, noted. I have my secret bicolor stash/planting. There are 20-22 trees I counted in my mind after I collected while I was 'chillin on the deck' removing the caps. They're fairly young so everything is within reach w/o a ladder. No other oaks around either; so very pure source.

I'm grew rubra's last winter and have some semi-decent seedlings but not very many that I would call great. I'm going on a 'botanizing' expedition next month to IL's Wabash Valley to collect acorns. From there I hope to get shumardii from a floodplain area (excellent for dry or wet soils/grafting rootstocks.) That's just the beginning, however. Lots of oak-species to be collected.

Thank you for your offer hair, however, I'll pass on it this time.

Dax

Hi Poaky, I'll stick with Swamp white. I'm growing them for rootstocks.

Swankadiddle. Looking forward to seeing those trees albeit only a couple years old.

Thank you very much for the Q.alba offer. May I send some bicolor to you?

Dax

Dax, I hope you plant at least one of those Bicolor for your yard, you have so many conifers, your choice/yard, but you will be happy you did one day. I don't need any Bicolor seeds, I have about 5-6 of them ( trees) already in my lower yard. I also have a Shumardi myself, nice fairly quick grower, you should think on keeping at least one for your yard. Also, Q. Nuttall is alot like the Shumard being okay with damp/well drained soils alike. I know you want the rootstock. I posted another comment and the individual pics of those 3 babies from your acorns/seedlings Dax. You'll know which thread it is. I also posted a pic of an unknown seed on a seperate thread. It is likely a Hickory of some type, but, I am usually way off on my guesses. The Momma tree was hard to see, there was a whole slope of trees, weeds and who knows what else. My Ooffer is needing IV fluids now. His kidneys are getting bad. But he seems to always get a (many) second winds. I hope he can hold out longer. His appetite is better after 2 days of IV fluids. He would not eat for a few days, I spoon fed him, and after the IV's he does better. I sometimes kinda MAKE him eat. But with diabetes, I have to get some food in him. I'm hoping he can get back to health for as long as we can hope for. A dog his size with diabetes and COPD doing as good as he has is this far is good. I just hope he can be around a bit longer. I am okay if he needs IV fluids often, but, the vet has to be involved to get it, and that's hard on the pocketbook. I'm sure you can sympathize Dax. I hope Daisy is doing great still. Poaky1

Poaky, 10 acorns is plenty. Same address as before.

It's sad to see your best friend struggling but there are hope in their eyes and ours. I'm sorry to hear that Poaky. He has sure made it a long way though. I've thought before and in unison with your comment, 'wow, he's still going'. But it's sad, I know all to well.

I'll plant oaks around the fringes of my property because I don't have space for full size oaks anywhere, now. I've spent many hours at a couple properties grafting on established pecans and hickories within thousands of bicolor's of the two combined. One with younger trees in rows and the other with 15-year trees. They're lovely.

Daisy's doing great.

Dax

Poaky, I am so sorry to hear about your dog, that's sad.

As far as seeds, I can offer a metric ton of Acer saccharum, too, but if your neighborhood is like mine, you can just walk down the street and get them by the handful.

They make fine rootstocks for paperbark maple and the paperbark hybrids such as 'Cinnamon Flake' (A.saccharum.) Just a tidbit.

Dax

I should've said that drying acorns is not an exact science. Over drying and they will lose their viability. Whether they are float tested and/or sunk for 24 hours to remove weevils... place them on drying racks or cardboard until they are surface dried and then place them in ziplock bags and put them into your refrigerator. If heavy condensation develops inside the ziplock bag, remove them and dry them a day at a time and return them to your refrigerator. Only until the inside of the ziplock bag shows mist-sized droplets of 1/4 to 1/3 of the bag are they ready. Any large water droplets and you must dry them more.

My above statement of two weeks is what I have done in the past and I still had far too much condensation inside my bags. You would be much safer to go thru the process a day or two days at a time until optimal condensation is achieved.

All the best,

Dax

Good point on the Acer saccharum. A fine tree in its own right of course, but useful as a rootstock.

I have drove by peoples houses and stopped in my car and went into their yard to take seed pods off their trees lol

A pretty normal day wasn't it Logan?

Dax

Thanks Dax and Hair, I am happy with having the Ooffer as long as I have. He is doing fine for now, after having 2 days of IV fluids. I think that will help him alot, for a while at least. I am hopeful that he will last a while longer. But his blood test results show his levels of (bun and creatinin) are in the high column. He may stick around for a while with I.V. fluids given often. I am hoping they will let us do some at home, not sure if they'll do it though. Hair, I am gonna check the tree at my vets, it is what is likely a sugar maple. I am thinking I can get a few at least (samaras) I will not be drying any of my acorns, but they are Q. Alba, so I don't think anyone would need to.

Oh, Hair IF you haven't let me know about your address can you do it? I haven't read all my emails yet, if you have Ok Poaky1

Poaky, I emailed you, but its the same address as before.

I can send you Sugar Maple seeds if you need 'em. TONS of them.

I emailed you back, I'll mail out the Q. Alba acorns Monday, and I got some of those Sugar Maple seeds today. They are green where the seed is, I am hoping they can be picked off the tree when the seed is still green, I kept the keys with some branch still on. Poaky1

Thanks, poaky! I'll be on the lookout.

By chance, I did pick some alba acorns off the ground today a park. I'll probably grow those along with yours for some genetic diversity.

Ok Great Hair, you likely got the Alba already my brother mailed them Saturday. Poaky1