• WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE
• IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE
• PALATABILITY
• NUTRITIONAL VALUE
• COVER VALUE
• VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES
• OTHER USES AND VALUES
• MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS

WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE:

Turkey oak is too small on average to be commercially important, but its hard wood is excellent fuel [11].

IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE:

Because of their palatability, digestibility, and seasonal abundance, acorns of turkey oak are a major food source for mammals and birds, including black bear, white-tailed deer, fox squirrel, scrub jay, northern bobwhite, and wild turkey [11,16,32]. Besides acorns, mature turkey oak stands have little to offer in way of forage because undergrowth is sparse [21]. Turkey oak acorns are not as important to wildlife if associated evergreen scrub oaks such as sand live oak (Q. virginiana var. germinata), myrtle oak (Q. myrtifolia), and Chapman oak (Q. chapmanii) are present [13].

PALATABILITY:

Acorns of most oak species are palatable. Acorns of trees in the black oak subgenus, such as turkey oak, are usually bitter and less palatable than those of the white acorn subgenus [32].

NUTRITIONAL VALUE:

Oak acorns are generally low in protein, phosphorus, nitrogen, and fiber but high in crude fat. Because acorns in the black oak subgenus have more crude fat, they provide more digestible energy than those in the white oak subgenus [32].

COVER VALUE:

Turkey oak provides cover and shelter for wildlife. Fox squirrels nest in turkey oak and use the leaves for nests [16]. Scrub jays, however, prefer the associated evergreen scrub oaks over turkey oak for nesting [38]. Turkey oak-dominated sandhills are good habitat for numerous reptiles and amphibians [18].

VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES:

No entry

OTHER USES AND VALUES:

Turkey oak bark and twigs contain substances used for tanning leather [11].

MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS:

To establish pine on sandhill sites, turkey oak should be removed because it competes with young pine for moisture and nutrients [11,31,37]. The undercutter method (in which the oak stems are severed beneath the ground surface) is the most effective eradication method. However, partial eradication by furrowing does not disturb the soil as much as undercutting. Basal and stump sprays, using 2,4,5-T, also control turkey oak [31]. The best time to eradicate turkey oak is late April to early May because carbohydrate root reserves are lowest when new leaves reach their full size [37]. Turkey oak removed by mechanical chopping on a Florida sandhill site did not recover for at least 4 years [9].

The removal of turkey oak to plant pine results in a pronounced reduction in food for wildlife. If the goal is to reproduce a longleaf pine community for wildlife habitat as well as timber production, some turkey oak should be left. If the best acorn producers are left in the stand, a well-stocked, mature stand of turkey oak can be thinned by 50 percent without affecting acorn production [11,21].

In north-central South Carolina, turkey oak is susceptible to oak wilt (Ceratocystis fagacearum), and in central Florida, curculionid weevils (Curculio spp.) attack turkey oak acorns [11].

Related categories for SPECIES: Quercus laevis | Turkey Oak