Monday, October 13, 2014
Acorns? you want acorns?
What to do with 25 gallons of red oak acorns?
That is a 50 gallon drum cut in half filled to the brim. We raked that all up from only one of two trees yesterday. There has to be something useful that can be done with them. Thankfully they only seem to drop every third year. Not sure if there is any rhyme or reason to the pattern other than it seems to be every third year.
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Give them to someone with pigs? I read somewhere that you can roast them and use them as a coffee substitute but I doubt its very nice.
ReplyDeleteYes, that was a thought. Need to find someone that raises pigs. I know that with some varieties of acorns you can make flour and then make bread out of it, but the process is quite involved and requires much soaking and boiling in order to remove the tannins. I am wondering if they can be burned as fuel.
DeleteHere's a good link on eating them, although I've never tried it!
Deletehttp://www.gowildconsulting.com/the-mighty-acorn-eat-your-way-back-into-the-web-of-life/
Hey Kev: Yes I had seen that one before. The detail is that you need to have particular species of oak acorns. The ones we have have an extremely high tannin content and some are gigantic over an inch across. The trees are quite old, about 4 feet in diameter across the main trunk, and it might have something to do with it. I tried experimenting with them a few years ago, I might try it again, but I have a lot on my plate right now.
Deletedon't squirrels eat acorns?
ReplyDeleteHi Jaz, they seem to prefer bird seed around here LOL... way too many bird feeders around the neighborhood. And I am guilty of that myself. But if I leave them around the squirrels will bury them in the lawn and in the spring I will have tons of oak saplings sprouting out of my lawn.
DeleteI was going to say the same thing as Kev. Anyone with pigs would be delighted to have them. You're right about making acorn flour, it's a pain. Is there a zoo anywhere near you. I expect they would like to have them.
ReplyDeleteHi Harry, there is the York Zoo about an hour south of me. Might have to give them a try. But I'd spend more money in gas than just taking them to the local "recycling center". If I can trade it to a local pig farmer for a nice ham hock that would be a good deal. Though there's not to many of them left around these parts.
DeletePut it on Craigs List, I get rid of everything that way.
ReplyDeleteLOL, that's an idea Doc
DeleteHi Michael, I hear they are edible. Go to youtube and type in "How to eat acorns". Let us know how they taste if you do it.
ReplyDeleteYes some varieties are edible but they are mostly the white oak variety and then require several weeks of leaching in water to wash out the bitter tannins. These are red oak and quite bitter. I'll look it up in you tube and check it out.
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