My driveway is covered in what I assume are partially eaten acorns. What’s going on? LP

Acorn debris is a sign that the squirrels populating your trees know winter is coming. As they sense the seasons changing, they begin to eat, collect, and hide a lot of acorns to help nourish themselves through the winter. And based on the amount of partially eaten acorns on the ground, decks, and driveways people are seeing, winter is definitely on its way. But let’s back up a few months.

In the spring when oak trees have determined the danger of frost has passed, they begin to flower. That’s right. Oak trees have flowers. And oak trees are monoecious trees meaning that a single oak tree contains both male and female flowers.

If you are familiar with oak trees or have one in your yard. You have likely seen the male flowers without considering them to be flowers. The male flowers are those long, slender, green growths that contain flowers arranged like beads on a string. These are the flowers that cover everything with green pollen in the spring. If you park your cars outside and have oaks, you are well aware of this green pollen. In contrast, female flowers on oaks are small and resemble leaf buds.

Pollination is accomplished when the wind blows the pollen from tree to tree, fertilizing the female flowers. The resulting acorns on white oaks mature within a year but it takes two years for the acorns on red oaks to mature.

While the ultimate goal is for those acorns to drop to the ground and become oak trees, the reality is that most will become food for squirrels and blue jays in town and wild turkeys, rodents, deer, and bears out in the country.

It’s a little early to tell if we will have a bumper crop of acorns this year but if the amount we are seeing drop right now is an indication, we could be in for a larger than normal crop in what is called a “mast” year. A mast year can be very localized in that it is dependent on weather and as we know weather and rain vary depending on your location. In a “mast” year, a large oak can product up to 10,000 acorns.

The main factors that determine acorn development are spring frosts, summer droughts, and fall rains. We know we are in drought conditions, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

Yes, acorns in town can be a nuisance but these acorns are an important part of our natural ecosystem. Good luck.

You can get answers to all your gardening questions by calling the Tulsa Master Gardeners Help Line at 918-746-3701, dropping by our Diagnostic Center at 4116 E. 15th Street, or by emailing us at mg@tulsamastergardeners.org. Photo: Pixabay