Q058 We ate hot dogs and french fries at a picnic table beneath an old oak dripping with Spanish moss. Change ... french > French oak > Oak Spanish > spanish No change needed Good choice! You must capitalize a language, no matter how or where the word is used. Species of trees generally do not require capitalization. The exception is when a proper noun is part of the name: Oregon white oak, Shumard oak, etc. Languages require a capital letter, even when they are modifiers before a noun. Check again! There is a problem!