# Cleaning up acorns....



## mwhitnee (Feb 21, 2016)

I have an oak that's dropped about 1.3 million acorns on the front corner of my lawn.  So far just tried blowing them in the fall, which really didn't work so great and I have a good Echo blower.   There are so many it's almost overwhelming.

Rake them? Ehhh.  Keep driving over them with the mower?  Kinda works...


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## mass_burner (Feb 21, 2016)

Drop the tree? I've decided to drop an oak in the rear of my house, branches growing over house, it's the millions if seed pods.


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## mwhitnee (Feb 21, 2016)

mass_burner said:


> Drop the tree? I've decided to drop an oak in the rear of my house, branches growing over house, it's the millions if seed pods.



It's a nice tree, not sure if I want to do that yet but it's an option.  Good firewood though...

I could rent a commercial blower, bet that would work.


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## jatoxico (Feb 21, 2016)

Lawn sweeper should work if you have something to drag it with.


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## mwhitnee (Feb 21, 2016)

jatoxico said:


> Lawn sweeper should work if you have something to drag it with.



I have a lawn tractor.

I don't know exactly what that is, the cart with the roller brush on the bottom?


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## jatoxico (Feb 21, 2016)

mwhitnee said:


> I don't know exactly what that is, the cart with the roller brush on the bottom?


Yes I have one and used it just for that in the past. Cut the grass down short then sweep, won't get every last one but worked good for me.


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## EatenByLimestone (Feb 21, 2016)

You need more squirrels and deer.


Wait, red or white oak family?


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## mwhitnee (Feb 22, 2016)

EatenByLimestone said:


> You need more squirrels and deer.
> 
> 
> Wait, red or white oak family?



I'm not good at tree id...


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## peakbagger (Feb 22, 2016)

There is a company in Mass that advertises in Northland Woodlands magazine that they want to collect acorns from properties . They collect them and feed them to pigs for a few weeks before slaughter. Its supposed to give the pork a different taste. Apparently in Europe they just let the hogs out in the forest to collect them themselves. I had read that in the south when Chestnuts were the dominant tree that they also allowed the hogs to feed off the chestnut in the woods.


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## DougA (Feb 22, 2016)

Make beer. In Tuscany I had beer made from acorns. Very nice.


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## EatenByLimestone (Feb 23, 2016)

mwhitnee said:


> I'm not good at tree id...



Can you post a pic of a leaf?  If they still aren't on the tree they could be below it.


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## mwhitnee (Feb 24, 2016)

EatenByLimestone said:


> Can you post a pic of a leaf?  If they still aren't on the tree they could be below it.




I'll try and get to that.  How about one of those power brooms?


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## mass_burner (Feb 24, 2016)

You can clear the area around the tree and spread mulch. The nuts will blend in better and will eventually decompose.


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## EatenByLimestone (Feb 24, 2016)

mwhitnee said:


> I'll try and get to that.  How about one of those power brooms?




Imnot sure what a power broom is. Mythoyugbt is if its a white oak the acorns will taste pretty good.  You can eat them.  Red oaks, well they're best fed to friends.


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## firefighterjake (Feb 25, 2016)

Get a squirrel or two . . . that will take care of the acorns.


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## mwhitnee (Feb 26, 2016)

A power broom is something like this...  Too close to the street for deer I think, I hate squirrels lol

http://www.shindaiwa-usa.com/products/power-broom.aspx


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## greg13 (Feb 26, 2016)

mwhitnee said:


> A power broom is something like this...  Too close to the street for deer I think, I hate squirrels lol
> 
> http://www.shindaiwa-usa.com/products/power-broom.aspx



How do you feel about Chipmunks?


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## mwhitnee (Feb 26, 2016)

No rodents of any kind thank you...


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## jeffesonm (Feb 26, 2016)

Get a pig, they love acorns.


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## sportbikerider78 (Mar 1, 2016)

mwhitnee said:


> No rodents of any kind thank you...



Think if it as a reserve food source.   
I'll never shoot one for the fun of it.  I look at hunting the same way.  I encourage deer to be comfortable around my property.  If I ever need them, easy pickings.


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## Dr.Faustus (Mar 2, 2016)

after many years of listening to the ping of 2 large oaks dropping acorns on my cars, house and gutters, i got rid of the trees. couldnt be happier. before that i would do a variety of things to control the shin deep mess.
the best was the tow behind lawn sweeper. wasnt perfect but it got most of it up. i'd dump them in a low corner of the yard. it eventually did raise it up a bit.

I had a lot of firewood from those trees. 7 years later, the stumps are almost gone.


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## brenndatomu (Mar 2, 2016)

Here ya go...nutz B gone!
http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrB...ard.com//RK=0/RS=8a6VgvJ7cgnaOcgIGVbD9gKO56Q-


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## Dr.Faustus (Mar 2, 2016)

brenndatomu said:


> Here ya go...nutz B gone!
> http://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrBTzs8YNdWnIgAfThXNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTEyY2Y2ZW8zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDQjExNjBfMQRzZWMDc3I-/RV=2/RE=1456984254/RO=10/RU=http://nutwizard.com//RK=0/RS=8a6VgvJ7cgnaOcgIGVbD9gKO56Q-




I love the sizes it comes in... LOL small nut wizard. I emailed them:

Dear Seeds and Such Inc;

I am considering buying your product, however I am not sure which one to purchase. One might say I have larger than average nuts. Please advise me on which product would best suit my needs. Attached is a picture of my nuts to assist you.

Sincerely,

Dr. Faustus


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## mwhitnee (Mar 3, 2016)

Dr.Faustus said:


> I love the sizes it comes in... LOL small nut wizard. I emailed them:
> 
> Dear Seeds and Such Inc;
> 
> ...



OMG lol. Professional nut grabber!


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## billb3 (Mar 3, 2016)

I've used  one of those heavy duty 28-36 inch wide push broom and also a squeegy thing for spreading out driveway seal coat and a plastic snow shovel. Not much better than a wide plastic fan leaf rake.
I've been tempted to try a vacuum as they can be  nasty like marbles to walk on.

Every now and then we'll have a Spring that has the right weather conditions for pollination and we'll have a huge crop of acorns under the white oak. White oak acorns set out roots shortly after they drop in the Fall so you have to get to them quick if the deer and rodents don't. The ones that do nothing are hollow and had a worm in them. you can usually see the exit hole.
You can make acorn flour out of the good ones. It's rather bitter.


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## mwhitnee (Mar 8, 2016)

Well I just bought a Garden Weasel medium nut gatherer for $42.  We will see how it works...

http://www.amazon.com/Garden-Weasel-Medium-Nut-Gatherer/dp/B0042U6GE8


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## xman23 (Mar 11, 2016)

Just wait next year maybe 10% what your had last fall.


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## mwhitnee (Mar 11, 2016)

xman23 said:


> Just wait next year maybe 10% what your had last fall.



Someone please explain oak acorn dropping cycles, I have no idea.


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## billb3 (Mar 11, 2016)

Every Spring they  bloom. If the weather cooperates and the wind blows the male pollen onto the female stamens you get a high fertilization rate. If it rains and rains and rains  the pollen ends up on the ground without carousing and hobnobbing first you get a low fertilization rate.
Usually the acorns drop just before the leaves in theory so that the leaves cover the acorns.


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## peakbagger (Mar 12, 2016)

There is a theory that the trees evolved to have random low and high years of production to defeat the critters who eat the acorns. During a bad year the population of the critters drops down and then a bumper year occurs and there are far too many acorns for the critters to eat all of them so more accords turn into seedlings . Many folks use the acorn drop as a predictor of future weather but most research doesn't support it.


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## TonyVideo (Mar 15, 2016)

Dry them and burn them in a multi fuel stove.


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## mwhitnee (Mar 15, 2016)

I should give them to the new owner of my old house, maybe the squirrels would just take them instead of chewing holes through the garbage cans lol...


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## Retired Guy (Mar 16, 2016)

I just blow them with a leaf blower.


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## mwhitnee (Mar 17, 2016)

I tried my new tool- works ok but it's just not gonna cut it, there are so many.  Going to try blowing them again then raking them...


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## TonyVideo (Mar 17, 2016)

I am surprised squirrels haven't hauled them off. I had a Subaru I bought once that sat for 2 years for $100 in 1990. Went to start and it was fine. Needed a new clutch. Went to turn the blower on and it kept blowing fuses. Decided to take the blower out and found out it was completely full of acorns and both fender wells were packed solid including all the air vents. Surely you have a vermin problem with that much food around.


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