The mighty white oak vs the lowly water oak...

Triple C

Senior Member
I've come to the conclusion that if I had to choose only one of these trees on my property it would be the often overlooked water oak. Drop almost every year without fail from October till just about the end of the season and deer vacuum them up. My white oaks were loaded this year for the first time in 3 years. Seems they only last about 3 weeks and pretty much done. Water oaks be dropping in December still.

Your opinion?
 
Water oak. I have a bunch of sawtooths and they are great for a few weeks. Water oaks can be hunted almost all season.

Plus, we don't have white oaks around my hunting property. Lots of reds and water oaks though.
 

livinoutdoors

Goatherding Non-socialist Bohemian Luddite
Water oaks are the sweet gums of the oak world, and i mean that in a good way. They want to grow! All over! Always have a bunch of acorns every year without fail. They grow pretty fast for an oak tree too.
 

ucfireman

Senior Member
I hate them.
Those little round acorns are like marbles, will make you look stupid when you slip and stumble like on ice. People will laugh if they see you.
Those leaves are a royal pain in the behind to try to rake, mulch, or burn.
They have those little thorn like protrusions on the limbs that will tear you up when you try to prune or cut around them.
 
Deer are wearing them out right now around here!
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
Deer won’t even touch water oak acorns on my SC place until all the rest are completely gone. Then, they don’t eat them much. They are tearing up whites, southern reds, and black oaks right now, and completely ignoring the water oaks.
 

The Original Rooster

Mayor of Spring Hill
I am lucky that my small property has tons of different kinds of oaks and other mast trees. Something is always producing.
 

southernman13

Senior Member
Walked outside yesterday morning. Right off the back porch I had 9 deer eating water oak akerns. They were at the edge of the field and it was just getting good light but my old eyes couldn’t tell if there were any horns amongst them lol. At least no whoppers. But I’d still rather have white oaks! I have plenty of both!
 

Twiggbuster

Senior Member
Got um in my back yard. Drop all season. Even edible through Feb.

Around Christmas, deer will jump my chain link fence to get this private stock of water oaks.
 

fireman32

"Useless Billy" Fire Chief.
If not for water oaks, deer at my place would starve. I don’t mind a small stand of white oaks for a sweet spot though. The water oaks on the field edge at my house are being hammered right now.
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
There are no (0) water oaks here in the mountains (or sweetgums, either.) We have white, northern red, southern red, black, scarlet, chestnut, post, and shingle oaks, but no water oaks. On my place in SC, the water oaks are like weeds.
 

livinoutdoors

Goatherding Non-socialist Bohemian Luddite
There are no (0) water oaks here in the mountains (or sweetgums, either.) We have white, northern red, southern red, black, scarlet, chestnut, post, and shingle oaks, but no water oaks. On my place in SC, the water oaks are like weeds.
Dang , no sweetgums?I think most folks consider them a weed tree but i like the way they look. Plus they are pretty storm hardy. My favorite tree overall is the sycamore though. Not sure why just a neat looking tree.
 

Nicodemus

The Recluse
Staff member
There are no (0) water oaks here in the mountains (or sweetgums, either.) We have white, northern red, southern red, black, scarlet, chestnut, post, and shingle oaks, but no water oaks. On my place in SC, the water oaks are like weeds.


Down here a sweetgum is the biggest weed we have, and they`ll take over. Nothing like stepping on a swwetgum burr barefooted either.

My favorites are longleaf pines, bald cypress, swamp chestnut oaks, and live oaks. Down here live oaks are very beneficial to wildlife.
 

280 Man

Banned
I think I would take the Water Oak as well. On my 160 acres I have many, many water oaks and most of them bear every year and as you noted, they drop until almost seasons end. Biggest buck I ever killed came on a stand of about 6-7 water oak trees.

"My" deer love water oaks.
 

NCHillbilly

Administrator
Staff member
Down here a sweetgum is the biggest weed we have, and they`ll take over. Nothing like stepping on a swwetgum burr barefooted either.

My favorites are longleaf pines, bald cypress, swamp chestnut oaks, and live oaks. Down here live oaks are very beneficial to wildlife.
Yeah, my sc place is infested with sweetgum. The only place you see them here is in the lower ends of the river valleys. My sc place is about one county north of the live oak line.
 

elfiii

Admin
Staff member
Your opinion?

Definitely with the exception it depends on the particular tree and what else is producing. If the white oaks are producing they won't touch water oaks until they have vacuumed up all the white oak acorns but once they do they wear out the water oaks, especially in December.
 
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