WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Quercus acutissima, WUCOLS IV

How often to water sawtooth oak in California

In July in the Central Valley, established sawtooth oak in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days: about 55 gallons each time under a 10 foot canopy, about 47 gallons a week. Sawtooth oak is a deciduous oak from Asia with glossy, narrow leaves edged in bristle-tipped teeth. It grows into a broad, rounded shade tree and can bear heavy acorn crops in spiny cups by about age ten. Young trees need regular deep soakings while roots spread, and established trees tolerate some drought.

TreeRated for 3 of 6 zones

How often to water sawtooth oak, month by month

Your city
Canopy width
10 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for sawtooth oak and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area under the branches, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure canopy width

A tree with its canopy width marked across the widest branches and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the branches, from the tips of the outer leaves on one side to the tips on the other. A tape works, or pace it out.

Water the whole circle under the branches, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that circle.

A wider canopy means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While the tree is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • A dry layer 6 inches down at the edge of the canopy tells you a young sawtooth oak needs a deep soak
  • Leaves curling or browning at the margins in midsummer heat can follow a long dry spell
  • Dead leaves clinging to the branches into winter are normal for this oak, not a sign of drought
  • Leaves yellowing in summer while the soil around the trunk stays wet suggest the roots are getting too much water
  • Weak, sparse new shoots on a young tree in spring can point to a root ball that dried out over winter

How to water it

  • Water a young sawtooth oak over its root ball and the soil just beyond, keeping the trunk itself dry
  • Apply water slowly until the soil is moist 18 inches down, then wait for the top several inches to dry
  • Spread a wide ring of wood chips or let fallen leaves stay as mulch, keeping the trunk flare bare
  • Plant in well-drained soil and keep lawn sprinklers from wetting the base all summer
  • Move the watering ring outward as the canopy spreads, reaching past the branch tips on older trees

Through the seasons

Water a newly planted sawtooth oak deeply through its first two or three summers, widening the soaked area as roots grow. Established trees need less help, though long hot summers still call for deep soakings. Leaves turn golden brown to copper in fall and often cling into winter before dropping. Irrigation matters most from spring leaf out through early fall. Rain usually carries the bare tree through winter on the north-central coast and in the Central Valley. In WUCOLS, sawtooth oak carries a moderate water rating on the north-central coast and in the Central Valley. Its rating drops to low water in South Inland. WUCOLS has not evaluated it for the south coast, the high desert or the low desert.

In pots

Sawtooth oak can start in a deep container, but it grows into a 40 to 60 foot tree. Plant it in the ground within a year or two. Pick a tall pot that drains freely. In summer heat, feel the mix 2 to 3 inches down every few days and soak it when that layer is dry. Pour off what collects in the saucer. In winter the bare seedling needs only occasional water, and its roots should never sit in a soggy pot.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
2.67gal per sq ft in JulyModerate water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
17.11 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.671.32.02.70.4JAN0.65FEB1.09MAR1.52APR2.08MAY2.48JUN2.67JUL2.39AUG1.8SEP1.18OCT0.56NOV0.34DEC0.671.32.02.70.4JFM1.52AMJ2.67JAS1.18OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 2.67 in Jul, 17.11 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Sawtooth Oak: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.370.4–0.31––
Feb0.530.65–0.35––
Mar0.871.09–0.52––
Apr1.181.52–0.64––
May1.462.08–0.78––
Jun1.612.48–0.92––
Jul1.612.67–1––
Aug1.492.39–0.93––
Sep1.241.8–0.74––
Oct0.871.18–0.53––
Nov0.470.56–0.36––
Dec0.310.34–0.27––
Year1217.11–7.37––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated moderate water in the Central Valley, like sawtooth oak. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Citrus TreesCitrus spp.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyJapanese MapleAcer palmatummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAvocado TreesPersea americanamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyMagnolia TreesMagnolia grandiflora ssp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPalm TreesSyagrus romanzoffiana (Arecastrum romanzoffianum)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyApple TreesMalus spp. (edible) e.g, 'Anna' (low chill variety for low desert)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPeach TreesPrunus spp. ediblemoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyPersimmon TreesDiospyros kakimoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAmur MapleAcer ginnalamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyFernleaf MapleAcer japonicummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBox ElderAcer negundomoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyNorway MapleAcer platanoidesmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed MapleAcer rubrummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyChinese MapleAcer truncatummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed BuckeyeAesculus paviamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed HorsechestnutAesculus x carneamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in July

Similar plants that need less water 16

Rated lower than sawtooth oak in the Central Valley. Worth a look for a new bed or a lawn replacement.

Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyFig TreesFicus carica ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPomegranate TreesPunica granatumlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyEucalyptusEucalyptus polyanthemoslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPine TreesPinus canariensislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTexas Red OakQuercus buckleyilow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyPortuguese OakQuercus faginealow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySoapbark TreeQuillaja saponarialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyNecklace TreeSophora affinislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBailey AcaciaAcacia baileyanalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySilver WattleAcacia dealbatalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen WattleAcacia decurrenslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes sawtooth oak, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water sawtooth oak in summer?

In July, established sawtooth oak in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days in the Central Valley and about every 22 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does sawtooth oak need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established sawtooth oak needs about 6.8 gallons a day under a 10 foot canopy and about 27 gallons a day under a 20 foot canopy. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for sawtooth oak change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates sawtooth oak separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, moderate water in the Central Valley zone, not evaluated in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, not evaluated in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not evaluated in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Is sawtooth oak invasive?

It has seeded into wild areas in several eastern states, and some extension services no longer recommend it. Pick up acorns and pull seedlings near open land.

Why does my sawtooth oak keep dead leaves in winter?

Many leaves turn golden brown and hang on into winter. This is normal for the tree and not a sign of drought. Rake them up as they drop and use them as mulch under the canopy.

When does sawtooth oak start making acorns?

Trees can bear acorns from about ten years old. The inch-long acorns sit in spiny, scaly cups and make a lot of litter, so keep the tree back from paths and patios.

How big does sawtooth oak get?

It reaches about 40 to 60 feet tall and 30 to 50 feet wide. Its roots spread well beyond the trunk, so water the outer canopy area, not just the base.

Can you overwater sawtooth oak?

Yes. It prefers moist soil that drains well, not ground that stays soggy. Frequent lawn watering around the trunk is a common cause, so give the tree its own deep soakings instead.

More plant watering guides

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Sources