VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Quercus virginiana | Live Oak 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
Live oak wood is heavy and strong but is little used commercially [21].


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Live oak acorns are an important food source for many birds and mammals,
including northern bobwhite, Florida scrub jay, mallard, sapsuckers,
wild turkey, black bear, squirrels, and white-tailed deer.  Because of
fall germination, the acorns are not available for very long [40].  Live
oaks in Texas coastal prairies provide shade for wildlife and livestock
[43].


PALATABILITY : 
Live oak acorns are a sweet and desirable food [21,20], but their
palatability diminishes after germination [40].  New root sprouts are
also palatable [39].


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Live oak browse is low in digestible energy [6].  Actively growing
sprouts are nutritious, with 13 to 17 percent crude protein [39].

The palatability, digestibility, and seasonal abundance of acorns make
them an important food source.  Live oak acorns are low in protein, but
high in fat and fiber.  The following table gives nutritional data in
dry weight percent for live oak acorns [38,40]:

Location   protein   fat   N-free    fiber    calcium    phosphorus
                           extract

TX           5.61    1.84  44.00     16.52    0.86       0.16
TX           5.48    8.29  77.73      2.28        
MS           5.22    8.59  67.95     16.71    0.18       0.08
AR           5.80    6.10  71.70     14.60    0.13       0.09



COVER VALUE : 
Live oak provides cover for birds and mammals.  The threatened Florida
scrub jay nests in live oak [54].  In southern Texas, live oak provides
nest sites for many species, including the hooded oriole, ferruginous
pygmy-owl, red-billed pigeon, northern beardless tyrannulet, and Couch's
kingbird.  The tropical parula requires the rounded clumps of ball moss
(Tillandsia recurvata) found in live oak for nest construction [14].


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Live oak is used to revegetate coal mine spoils in Texas.  Live oak
inoculated with either endo- or ectomycorrhizae have better growth and
development on these lignite overburden sites [9].

Live oak is used for reforestation of the southernmost portions of the
lower Mississippi Valley, which were originally cleared for agriculture
[3].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Live oak is used for shade and as an ornamental [21].  Live oak is
considered "one of the noblest trees in the world and virtually an
emblem of the Old South" [19].

In the past, live oak was used for ship building [21].  Native Americans
produced an oil comparable to olive oil from live oak acorns [20].  It
is believed that Native Americans used live oaks as trail markers by
staking saplings down, causing them to grow at extreme angles [19].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Dense stands of live oak reduce forage production for livestock.  Live
oak is extremely hard to kill because it sprouts vigorously from the
root collar and roots [20].  However, the soil-applied herbicide,
tebuthiuron, effectively controls live oak.  In a study in Texas,
herbicide treatment of live oak increased grass yields in the first
posttreatment growing season and increased forb yields in 3 to 4 years
posttreatment [15].

On the Edwards Plateau in Texas, live oak was reduced by 75 percent
after mechanical brush control, using the double chain method.  The oaks
sprouted, but white-tailed deer browsing kept sprouts at ground level
for the first posttreatment year [39].

Live oak decline, a wilt disease caused by Ceratocystis fagacearum, is a
serious threat to Texas live oak and possibly live oak varieties in
other states as well [21].  Fungicides are not effective because the
fungus colonizes deep in the sapwood.  Live oak firewood should not be
transported into wilt-free areas because the fungus survives in dead
wood for up to 1 year [30].

Leaf blister, caused by Taphrina caerulescens, defoliates trees.
Heartwood decay (Polyporus dryophylus) is prevalent in live oak, but the
sapwood is so strong that infected trees usually remain standing [21].
Live oak is a favorite of gall wasps, but the galls do not appear to
affect the health of the trees [19].

Mistletoe (Phoradendron spp.), ball moss, and spanish moss (Tillandsia
usneoides) live in live oak.  Spanish moss accumulates in such
abundance, that it can shade out the lower parts on the crown and
interfere with photosynthesis.  Spanish moss can be controlled by
spraying [19].

A borer, Archodontes melanopus, attacks roots of young live oak [19].

Live oak is extremely susceptible to damage by freezing temperatures,
but it withstands hurricanes [21].

Related categories for Species: Quercus virginiana | Live Oak