Oaks are poor houseplants. The soil could be too rich, and constantly damp for a tree that might not be a wetland plant is lethal. A tree from a wet forest needs fast draining soil unless it grows in a boggy area, and the soil temperature is also critical.

Everything I know about oaks could fit in an acorn, but growing it as a houseplant will involve mimicking some of the conditions in a redwood forest. Some frost, but not a December night in VT. If your tree is not hardy to VT, you might want to plant the tree where it can grow outside.

Its not impossible that the oak you found in the Redwood forest will survive a Vermont winter, but it is pretty unlikely.

As far as soil moisture, if the tree really does grow in the Redwood forest, then its not impossible that it is adapted to moist soil on a continual basis. Certainly there are some oaks in the eastern US which prefer moist soil all the time (Pin Oak comes to mind).

In any case, its unlikely to be Chinkapin. Here is a list of common oaks native to California (stolen from http://www.icogitate.com/~tree/oak.ac26.htm ) :

coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia).
canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepsis).
blue oak (Quercus douglasii).
Oregon white oak (Quercus garryana).
valley oak (Quercus lobata).
California black oak (Quercus kelloggii).
valley oak (Quercus lobata).
interior live oak (Quercus wislizenii).
California black oak (Quercus kelloggii).
blue oak (Quercus douglasii).
canyon live oak (Quercus chrysolepsis).
Engelmann oak (Quercus engelmannii)

go buy a bag of cactus mix.. and use that..

trees.. like a drink and near drying.. in between waterings ... most do not like constant deep moisture.. which a high peat media can do ...

and quit forcing it to do the laundry.. and get it outdoors ... in full shade .. no small black pots in sun ...

once hardened off the sun .. ask if you dont know what that means ... the tree can go in sun.. but not the pot ... if you can figure that out ...

hopefully you can get an ID.. and figure out the odds of winter hardiness..

if you are forced to make it an indoor winter plant.. you are going to have to look into bonsai ...

if hardy.. it should go in the ground ... at fall tree planting time... which is around the time all the other trees start turning color in fall ... in vermont

listen at link for further dreams..

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Haw haw. I had to put the tree on the stove in my kitchen to snap a good photo of it...no good elsewhere in my apartment. I've been looking up the trees that famartin listed, and I think what I have is an Engelmann oak. It grows in zones 18 to 23, and VT is a 4, so it probably will have to be a bonsai...anyway, I found what plant hardening is here, so that's good:

http://gardening.about.com/od/gettingstarted/qt/Hardening_Off.htm

Looks like I'm off to go get some cactus soil.

18-23 sounds like Sunset Zones which TOTALLY different than the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone map

John

Hmmm... you sure? I mean, Englemann doesn't appear to be one of the species which grows in concert with Redwoods, as from what I can tell it is generally confined to drier areas near Los Angeles. But I'm no expert on identifying California oaks...

Aghhhhh. How many times can I say, DO NOT MOVE PLANTS OR PLANT PARTS AROUND. Sudden Oak Death can be spread by acorns. I am sure you don't want to be known as the person who brought this (or other insects or diseases) to the north east. Please burn these plants, acorns and now the soil that they are planted in, and let's hope it is not too late.

Here is a link that might be useful: Can Be Spread By Acorns

Good point IPM. I know that Maine and Vermont have instituted a "No imported firewood" after people from MA were bringing in firewood from an area with Longhorned Beetles.

The link you provide shows that SOD is pretty much epidemic in Cal. Maybe the curling leaves on the seedling in question is the fungus already doing its nasty work?

I have to agree. Destroying the seedling is preferable to spreading the diesese. This is from the VT Dept. of Forestry:
"Tree diseases that are worrisome but not yet known to occur in Vermont include oak wilt and sudden oak death."

Yes, IPM. I am going to bring down every tree species in the northeast kingdom because of this. Hell hath no fury like that of a diseased oak.

Also, the link says that I should have cleaned the mud/soil off my shoes after exiting the park. I didn't do that. I guess we're screwed either way.

I f you get it to overwinter okay maybe you can ID it better next spring. Baby oaks seem to put out leaves that are ambiguous for a while. Hopefully it doesn't need a cold period in winter. Isn't the Sierra Madre where the redwoods are? Maybe the oak isn't so tender after all. I think I would try it outside after gradually getting it hardened off and then used to the sun gradually. It may not have a future in the house unless it can take year round warmth. Good luck with it either way.

No, the Redwoods are confined to within 20 miles of the coast from near Monterrey north to southern Oregon.

AnskyCj, thank you for understanding and for your altruistic response. I feared that I was a bit harsh and that your response would have been less than understanding of my fears.
Nice to know that there are still people that will put the survival of an entire species above self gratification. You kneed not burn the pots if you wish to keep them, but wash them in a bleach solution. I should not worry too much about the shoes, but yes next time do wash them off.

IpmMan is right, it's a very bad idea to move plant material around from region to region, and in this case there's a known pathogen (Phytophthora ramorum) that's destructive in that area. Nurseries in affected areas are now regulated by a federal quarantine, because the pathogen has been shipped in infected material before.

The chances that you will successfully introduce P. ramorum to VT may be small, but you don't want to be "that guy" who did so. These exotic pests and pathogens are no joke.