Quercus garryana var. semota

Jepson

Oregon white oak

Fagaceae Edible: Seeds, Acorns, Nut Potential hazards — see below 22,633 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Quercus garryana is an oak tree species found most commonly in the Pacific Northwest, with a range stretching from southern California to southwestern British Columbia. It is commonly known as the Garry oak, Oregon white oak or Oregon oak. It is named for Nicholas Garry, deputy governor of the Hudson's Bay Company.

Description

A temperate oak tree (Fagaceae) producing acorns as edible seeds.

This description is brief — help expand it

Edible Uses

The acorns are made into a fine meal and cooked into a mush, which is allowed to harden into a 'cake.' The acorns are also stored for future use.

Traditional Uses

The acorns are made into a fine meal and cooked into a mush. It is allowed to harden into a "cake". The acorns are stored for future use.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Known Hazards

The mildly sweet (but perhaps unpalatable) acorns are edible, ideally after leaching. The bitterness of the toxic tannic acid would likely prevent anyone from eating enough to become ill. Native Americans ate the acorns raw and roasted, also using them to make a kind of flour. The hardwood is hard and heavily ring-porous. It has distinctive growth rings and prominent rays. Heartwood can be a deep chocolate brown color and sapwood will vary from golden brown to nearly white. This makes it particularly attractive to woodworkers; however, it can be difficult to use in woodworking without experiencing warping and cracking. Although it was popularly used around the turn of the 20th century, historically the tree has not been regarded as having significant commercial value and is frequently destroyed as land is cleared for development. The wood is suitable for making fence posts. With similar qualities to those of other white oaks, the wood has been used experimentally in Oregon for creating casks in which to age wine. In Washington, it has been used for aging single malt whiskey since the 2010s. Oregon white oak barrels are said to give the whiskey "burnt sugar notes, marshmallow sweetness, and a light floral character that showcases the best of the Garry oak". When used as firewood, Oregon white oak produces 28 million British thermal units per cord (2.3 MWh/m3) burned.