VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Chrysolepis chrysophylla | Giant Chinquapin 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
The wood of giant chinquapin is light brown with a pinkish tinge and is
moderately heavy, hard, and strong [1].  However, giant chinquapin trees
are rarely found in sufficient quantities to warrant commercial
utilization [62].  During settlement times, giant chinquapin was used
locally to make agricultural tools and other items requiring a strong
hardwood [1].


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Tree forms of giant chinquapin are generally considered of minor
importance to wildlife and livestock [62].  Giant chinquapin nuts are
nutritious [48] but are produced at irregular intervals and in low
numbers [40,62].  When available, nuts are eaten by numerous small
mammals, including the Allen's chipmunk and the golden-mantled ground
squirrel [11,62].

Giant chinquapin shrubs are rarely browsed by livestock [37], but
certain shrubby ecotypes are of moderate importance as mule deer browse
in portions of California [62].


PALATABILITY : 
Giant chinquapin browse is of low palatability to most livestock and
wildlife [37,62].  Utilization of chinquapin occurs primarily when other
more preferred species are unavailable and on many sites is indicative
of overgrazing [62].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


COVER VALUE : 
Giant chinquapin and redstem ceanothus (Ceanothus velutinus) often
codominate the shrub layer of mixed-conifer communities.  These
understories provide good mule deer escape cover on summer range in the
southern Oregon Cascades [64,65].  Mature stands of the white fir/giant
chiquapin-boxwood/prince's pine and the Shasta red fir-white fir/giant
chinquapin-boxwood/princes pine plant associations are utilized as
elk-calving and deer-fawning areas.  Such stands also provide feeding
and nesting habitat for the spotted owl, goshawk, and pileated
woodpecker [36].



VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Chinquapins may be useful for erosion control, since vigorous sprouting
occurs following disturbance [37].  Propagation difficulties may,
however, limit their usefulness in planting programs [54,55].  Plants
usually survive several potting stages, but survival from outplanting is
rare to nonexistant.


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Although often of horticultural interest due to its graceful beauty and
evergreen nature, giant chinquapin is notoriously prone to transplant
failure [37,54,55].  Historically, giant chinquapin nuts were roasted
and eaten by indigenous people throughout the Coast Ranges of northern
California and southwestern Oregon [41].  Nuts are similar in taste and
appearance to filberts or hazelnuts [41,54].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Competition with conifers:  Giant chinquapin competes with conifers
following logging or burning in the Klamath Mountain region [16,22,60].
Although inconspicuous beneath closed conifer overstories, suppressed
giant chinquapin develops with remarkable speed once released from dense
shade [36,65].  In the southern and eastern Cascades, giant chinquapin
is a common species in brushfields dominated by chaparrallike, evergreen
shrubs such as ceanothus, manzanita (Arctostaphylos spp.), and canyon
live oak (Quercus chrysolepis) [17,21].  Drier sites within
mixed-conifer and mixed-evergreen forests are particularly prone to the
rapid development of a dense giant chinquapin cover.  Predisturbance
densities of giant chinkquapin are likely to be high on sites with dry,
nutrient-poor soils where seedlings become increasingly competitive
[48].

On sites where conifer regeneration is a primary management concern,
herbicide treatments can be effective in temporarily reducing giant
chinquapin [6,7,58,59,68].  Both tree and shrub forms are resistant to
single herbicide treatments which only partially kill stems and branches
[22].  Repeated applications are necessary to reduce giant chinquapin
cover effectively [22,23,59].  Preharvest burning alone or brush
slashing used in conjunction with either preharvest or postharvest
burning are also potential methods of controlling suppressed
sclerophyllous understories [35,46].  Other nonchemical control methods
include mechanical means of site preparation, such as uprooting stumps
or stump grinding [16].  Nonchemical treatments are most successful when
applied within a few years of conifer planting programs; postplanting
follow-up treatments may be necessary on many sites.  Preliminary
research indicates that foliar fungi may serve as biological control
agents for giant chinquapin [9].

Related categories for Species: Chrysolepis chrysophylla | Giant Chinquapin