Bur oak.

That&8217;s a funny name for a tree, isn&8217;t it?

In my last article, I promised to offer tree information and some suggestions about what to serve with your Thanksgiving dinner.

While I expected to tell you about all of the beautiful colors of the leaves on the trees, I found a magnificent tree specimen that deserves recognition.

The bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) is a relatively slow growing tree that increases height about two to three feet per year in ideal conditions. It prefers loamy soil texture, but can grow in most any type of earth and it is drought tolerant.

With a maximum height of about 70 to 80 feet, the bur oak (or the mossy cup oak as it is sometimes called) is a long living dendrological wonder of nature with a life span of 200 to 300 years.

The leaves can be as long as ten inches with a width of up to four and a half inches.

This tree is commonly used in urban settings because of its tolerance to constant city growth.

The bur oak got my attention a few days ago when I got beamed in the head with the largest acorn I&8217;ve ever seen! I was at Heritage Park in Auburn, when a tree dropped a seed on my head as if to say to me, &8220;Hey, Buddy! Look at me!&8221;

I

immediately started my research and now, I&8217;m looking for an ideal spot in my landscape for one of these multi-purposed trees.

Now, on to the next subject.

Whether or not you usually serve sweet potatoes on Thanksgiving you should try this: Wrap sweet potatoes (whole or in halves) in aluminum foil and bake in a 400 degree over for about an hour, or until fork tender. Serve them split open and offer a choice of toppings for your guests to choose.

The toppings should include: Sweet butter; cinnamon butter; marshmallow cream; chopped, sweetened, toasted pecans or walnuts and chopped dried fruit mix.

This can make a simple dinner vegetable more versatile without the added cooking time to prepare more.

Next week, we&8217;ll have more tree talk and all this month I&8217;ll offer some new suggestions about Thanksgiving dinner