How do I get an acorn to grow ito a tree?

Question

An absolutely beautiful little girl, daughter of a friend, gave me an acorn at the funeral of a friend and coworker. I want to turn it into a tree...are there any tricks to getting it to grow? I don't want to fail!

Answer 1

Simplest way, revert back to grade school when you took a seed, put it in between two moist paper towels, and wrapped it in plastic wrap. It will sprout, then take the seedling and plant it in soil.
Simple, and maybe a little childish, but it will work!!!
Good Luck!

Answer 2

If you plant acorns, they will produce another tree. However, be
prepared for a low number of successes. Many acorns may be infertile or
have some pest that has eaten out the inside of an acorn. I have seen
acorns germinate on the soil surface, so I would recommend placing the
seeds half-submerged in a moist soil or potting mix more because you
should be able to see the seeds sprout. A soil similar to where the
acorns have been harvested would be good, otherwise a standard potting
soil. Because the acorn is a large seed and has a lot of nutrients and
energy stored, the seedlingd should not be too demanding.

Depending upon the species (kind) of oak tree, the following might be helpful:
http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/hortline/messages/3341.shtml
http://phytosphere.com/oakplanting/acorns.htm
http://www.californiaoaks.org/ExtAssets/careacornssec.pdf

Answer 3

The best way for getting an acorn to grow is to drill a small hole into the outer shell and then plant shallowly in some dirt. The small hole allows the water to get directly at the seed itself, without having to work it's way through the shell. My son and I grew a sapling from an acorn and this is what the website we consulted reccomended.

Keep in mind that as a sprout/sapling the tree will need to be brought indoors during the winter. It is too weak to stay outside in the winter until it has about two years growth to it.

Good Luck.