I don't have extensive experience, but I've found that keeping them in pots for two years works well. I have tried planting out the first year and germinating directly in the ground, but tend to lose more that way. I do repot after the first year to accommodate root growth (white oaks like tall pots). By the second year, I find they're tough enough to fend well on their own without too much care. I still cage them and weed regularly. White oak seedlings are so beautiful, I actually like having them indoors over winter, but if you prefer to bury the pots outside, they'll do fine too. I would love to raise a few every year, but I run out of choice spots to plant them in.

When it gets tan or brown it's ripe. An inch,or just covered barely has worked for me. I always lay mine on their sides. The acorns of the oak you have will put out roots ( taproot ) before any leaves, and this will happen not long after they fall if it's a good viable acorn. They may start to send out a taproot before you get them planted. The red oak family oaks don't sprout til after a cold period, the English oak is in the white oak family and needs no cold period to sprout. I don't know how to beat the critters, pantyhose over the branch? Well, If you see it when it's tan or brown shake the tree? That's early for seed production. I have used a piece of hardware cloth with rocks around the edges to deter squirrels from digging.

yeah.. i am just slummin.. lol ... first i guess i am relying on your ID ... if correct.. white oak should be fully zone appropriate ... mine is anyway in z5 ... second.. again.. if ma nature sprouted them.. she ought to know best ... third .. in my z5 ann arbor area [actually adrian] ... they would have about another 60 days ... to grow that tap root before soil freeze ... before suspended animation occurs ... besides worrying.. i dont know what more you can do .. perhaps you should have tried a few in pots.. just to experiment ... ken

Well, I went looking for signs of Q. velutina acorns ripening on some trees. Well, I was staring up into a tree a guy came up to me with sawdust all over him and said "hi". He was part of a crew that had from what he said just chopped down a large chestnut tree in the back of one of the homes by the road I was on. He told me that I was a month too early for the Red oak acorns, but, the squirrels were eating up the other nuts (chestnuts?) like crazy. I did see a Q. Alba with little green acorns on it. So I guess that's my answer. As far as the one pic on someone else's post here wanting an ID of their red oak ( I think a Q. Velutina) I don't know how to explain that one. I guess they had a already half formed Red oak family (Q. Velutina was my guess) acorn. The place I was at when the guy came up to my car, has tons of mature trees. Oaks, Chestnuts obviously, Maples. sycamores, Hickory, many others I am unfamiliar with some Walnuts, I don't know a black Walnut from any other Walnut. Pecans look like Walnuts to me as far as leaves. I would need my Field Guide to tell the difference. I didn't go to the place that I will be going to in mid to late September for a Q. Velutina acorn search. If they had been ripe I could've gotten them where I went today. I may look there first, (where I went today) in mid Sept. If I find any I'll offer some to anyone here who wants any. I have 2 Q. Velutinas. I have one that is close to a Q. Robur, and one that has enough room to grow to a nice wide spreading tree. I love the one that is in the open.