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Quercus prinus
Rock chestnut oak
Deciduous tree
(1 Page of 5)

 
The Quercus prinus plant species is found in Eastern N. America - Maine to Georgia and Alabama. It is a member of the Fagaceae family. Common gardeners may know the plant as Rock chestnut oak. Some home gardeners know the variety as Q. montana. Willd.

Cultivation | Propagation | General Uses
Medicinal | Edible Uses
 
Latin Name:  Quercus prinus
Common Name:  Rock chestnut oak
Family:  Fagaceae
Author:  L.
 
Known Hazards:  None known
 
Mature Height:  20   Mature Width:  
 
Habitat:  Dry or rocky woods, mainly on siliceous soils[43] and on the borders of streams[82]. The best specimens are found on deep rich well-drained soils[229].



Edible Uses:  Seed - raw or cooked[2, 46, 83, 159]. Somewhat sweet according to some reports[62, 82, 95, 229, 235] whilst another says that it contains bitter tannin[183]. The seed is quite large, up to 4cm long and 25mm wide[82, 200]. It can be dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in stews etc or mixed with cereals for making bread[183]. If the seed contains bitter tannins, these can be leached out by thoroughly washing the seed in running water though many minerals will also be lost. Either the whole seed can be used or the seed can be dried and ground it into a powder. It can take several days or even weeks to properly leach whole seeds, one method was to wrap them in a cloth bag and place them in a stream. Leaching the powder is quicker. A simple taste test can tell when the tannin has been leached. The traditional method of preparing the seed was to bury it in boggy ground overwinter. The germinating seed was dug up in the spring when it would have lost most of its astringency. The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.

For further Quercus prinus gardening information
click on one of the blue links below

 
Cultivation | Propagation | General Uses
Medicinal | Edible Uses
 

The information above has been supplied solely via the hard work and dedication of the team at 'Plants for a Future'.
View their bibliography
Useful Edible Plants Future

 


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