Am I the only one who just found out how many trees a single mature oak can support?

I was reading an old forestry journal and it said a big white oak can be home to over 500 different insect species. Has anyone else come across a fact that made you look at a common tree totally differently?

4 comments

4 Comments

murphy.linda1mo agoMost Upvoted

Just learned that and now I'm side-eyeing the oak in my yard like it's a bug hotel lmao.

grace5081mo ago

Wait what did you learn exactly... because now I'm worried about my own trees. Are we talking like... a whole ecosystem in there?

terry_jones1mo agoTop Commenter

My neighbor's maple had a whole ant colony living in a hollow branch. I mixed up a spray with two tablespoons of dish soap and a gallon of water, soaked the area at dusk for a week. It cleared them out without hurting the tree.

fox.derek1mo ago

I always figured you needed chemicals for a serious ant problem. That soap trick Terry mentioned actually saved a client's young birch last season. Murphy.linda, you might want to check your oak for soft spots before you evict anyone.