Scattered among the other trees and scrub growing at Roundrock are a few of these Chinkapin Oaks. I say "a few," but they are probably more numerous than I realize. The more I look, the more I see in my forest.
This particular specimen is growing just down the hill from the shelter. It has a nice view of what will one day be a lake, and it gets plenty of sun, though I suspect whatever rainfall it gets runs down the rocky hillside before soaking in to nurture its roots. It is shouldering several other trees aside in competition for the light, and it may come to pass that Pablo will trim some of those away so that this Chinkapin can flourish a bit.
Notice the toothed leaves that the Chinkapin has. Despite this pointy appearance, the Chinkapin is classed with the white oaks, which generally have rounded lobes on their leaves. Perhaps a century ago, a walker in the forest might have mistaken this leaf for that of a true chestnut tree. They are remarkably similar. Because of this similarity of leaf shape, the chinkapin is sometimes known as the Yellow Chestnut Oak. Well, the chestnuts are nearly all gone now, though I read recently of a grove that has been found that seems to be resistant to the fungal blight that has killed all of the other chestnuts.
This longish bark is characteristic of Chinkapin Oaks, at least as they manifest themselves in Missouri, which are, of course, the ones I know best.
I'm pretty sure I have one of these sprouting in place of a dead pecan in the acre below the dam. Chinkapins do well enuf in dry soil, and my guess is that dry soil is what killed that particular pecan. The acorns of Chinkapins are edible by both man and beast, and perhaps I'll try to harvest some of them in, say, 50 years to give it a try. Acorn pie, anyone?
Missouri calendar:
- Great blue herons begin fledging.
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July 17th, 2006 at 4:48 am
I tried some “acorn flour” in some pancakes years ago. It definately added a different taste. It’s more work than I wanted to do for breakfast so I did not repeat the experiment. We do have a few Chinkapin Oaks around here, but very few and mostly on very dry slopes.
July 17th, 2006 at 8:51 am
not so many oaks here in western wa. i like the bark on that one. am i # 20k?
July 17th, 2006 at 12:54 pm
I made candied acorns once, and they were edible, but really I guess just about anything would be tasty if you candied it.
That leaf looks like the one on what’s just called “Chestnut Oak” around here. If it’s the same tree, the acorns are huge!
July 17th, 2006 at 1:24 pm
OW – I imagine this kind of foraging is a lot of work — more than most people not on a subsistence diet would care to do.
Roger – You’re not #20k yet, but I expect it to happen tomorrow afternoon.
Rurality – I think Chestnut Oak is another common name for this same tree, though a Swamp Chestnut Oak is a different tree.
July 17th, 2006 at 7:04 pm
Those are a popular landscape import in office complex parking lots around here. The acorns really are giamongous.