Yes, the oak is actually blooming. But while every child knows their acorns and likes to tinker with them, the blossoms that rush ahead seem to be invisible. Until the moment when we consciously look up into the big crown.
The oak flowers only very rarely and in old age
When does a young oak tree blossom?
The young oak leaves a long time before it shows its flowers for the first time. A whole 60 to 80 annual rings further, the time has finally come. The tree is then no longer a sapling, the branches hang unreachably high. No wonder we don't notice the flowers. In addition, the oak only repeats this flowering spectacle every 2 to 7 years.
heyday
The oak begins to cover its bare branches comparatively late, when other trees have long since put on their leaves. In years when she has planned flowers, they sprout at the same time as the leaves.
- from May onwards, the oak trees bloom in this country
- Flowering time depends on the weather
- from a few days to a maximum of two weeks
Each oak tree bears both male and female flowers at the same time, mostly at the base of young branches.
male flowers
During flowering, only male flowers can be seen from afar due to their size. The following features are typical, although the flowers are slightly different for each oak species:
- male flowers are dainty
- have narrow, yellow-green colored bracts
- and about 6-10 stamens
- Inflorescences are called catkins
- they are 2-4 cm long and hang down in clusters
female flowers
From a distance, female flowers look like thin twigs with some reddish dots. The tiny button shape of the flowers can only be viewed in detail up close or with binoculars.
- they sit individually on long and hairy stalks
- are also found in clusters of 2-5 flowers
tips
If you want to collect acorns in the first autumn after flowering, you will be disappointed. You have to wait, because they only mature in their second year.