Edible Parts: Seed
Edible Uses: Coffee

Seed - cooked. The seed is about 12mm long[227], it can be dried, ground into a powder and used as a thickening in stews etc or mixed with cereals for making bread. The seed contains bitter tannins, these can be leached out by thoroughly washing the seed in running water though many minerals will also be lost. Either the whole seed can be used or the seed can be dried and ground it into a powder. It can take several days or even weeks to properly leach whole seeds, one method was to wrap them in a cloth bag and place them in a stream. Leaching the powder is quicker. A simple taste test can tell when the tannin has been leached. The traditional method of preparing the seed was to bury it in boggy ground overwinter. The germinating seed was dug up in the spring when it would have lost most of its astringency. The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.

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Antiseptic  Astringent  Dysentery  Febrifuge  Salve  Tonic

The bark is antiseptic, astringent, febrifuge and tonic[82, 227, 257]. An infusion has been used in the treatment of chronic dysentery, indigestion, asthma, lost voice and intermittent fevers[257]. The bark has been chewed as a treatment for mouth sores[257]. An infusion of the bark has been used as a wash on sore, chapped skin[257]. Any galls produced on the tree are strongly astringent and can be used in the treatment of haemorrhages, chronic diarrhoea, dysentery etc[4].

Repellent  Tannin  Wood

A mulch of the leaves repels slugs, grubs etc, though fresh leaves should not be used as these can inhibit plant growth[20]. Oak galls are excrescences that are sometimes produced in great numbers on the tree and are caused by the activity of the larvae of different insects. The insects live inside these galls, obtaining their nutrient therein. When the insect pupates and leaves, the gall can be used as a rich source of tannin, that can also be used as a dyestuff[4]. The bark is a good source of tannin[82, 227]. Wood - coarse-grained, durable, heavy, hard, strong[43, 227, 229]. It cracks badly when left in the sun and rots when in contact with the soil[229]. It weighs 43lb per cubic foot[227]. It is not a prime timber, but is used for rough lumber, tools, furniture etc and as fuel[43, 227, 229].

Special Uses