The Daily Bucket is a place where we post and exchange our observations about what is happening in the natural world in our neighborhood. Each note about the bugs, buds, and birds around us is a record that we can refer to in the future as we try to understand the patterns of nature that are quietly unwinding around us. |
On March 29 of this year, I wrote a Backyard Science diary for the Daily Bucket called
My Backyard This Week. In part of that diary, I expressed some concern for an oak tree at the edge of the woods and yard.
Close by is a small burr oak I've been nursing and training to grow straight. It was covered by a lot of other stuff until I liberated it. These wasp galls are on several branch junctions. You can see the exit holes on the galls. I understand this is a cosmetic problem and not harmful to the oak. I hope that's true.
I am happy to say the oak seems to have suffered no obvious negative effects this year. Our summer was extremely hot and dry. It could have used more water. It grows on the east edge of a wooded patch and was reasonably shaded in the hottest parts of the afternoon. Join me below for a few additional pictures.
These first two pictures show the leaves. It stands about 6' tall this year.
These next two are up close views of the gall shells.
Some searching brought up a few sites about galls on oaks.
• http://ento.psu.edu/...
• http://www.ca.uky.edu/...
• http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/...
• http://leftcoastnatty.blogspot.com/...
• http://www.extension.iastate.edu/...
What is going on in your backyard? Tell us where you live. Share what details you wish. No story is too small for the daily bucket. The more there is the better.