Mast update
Early in the summer I wondered whether this was a mast year for acorns. Yes it is: the oaks have produced vast quantities of acorns, and they are much bigger than usual too. There are far too many for all the creatures that feed on them to consume, so we can hope for a larger than usual number of new oak saplings next year.
If you look at the acorns under the trees, you will probably find some that have germinated. What? It’s November! Surely they don’t germinate until Spring? Well, I have seen this before in a previous mast year. In a warm autumn, the acorns germinate and quickly put out a root and get it into the earth. Then they are ready to put out growth shoots in Spring and have a head start on seeds that wait until then to get started.
Give the oaks a helping hand: collect a pocketful of acorns from under the trees and strew them in likely places as you walk.
Mast update
Early in the summer I wondered whether this was a mast year for acorns. Yes it is: the oaks have produced vast quantities of acorns, and they are much bigger than usual too. There are far too many for all the creatures that feed on them to consume, so we can hope for a larger than usual number of new oak saplings next year.
If you look at the acorns under the trees, you will probably find some that have germinated. What? It’s November! Surely they don’t germinate until Spring? Well, I have seen this before in a previous mast year. In a warm autumn, the acorns germinate and quickly put out a root and get it into the earth. Then they are ready to put out growth shoots in Spring and have a head start on seeds that wait until then to get started.
Give the oaks a helping hand: collect a pocketful of acorns from under the trees and strew them in likely places as you walk.