GENDER? THERE ARE BOY TREES AND THERE ARE GIRL TREES. AND YOU’LL NEVER GUESS WHICH ONE IS BLAMED FOR MAKING THE POLLEN OR THE MALE TREES. WVTM 13 LISA CRANE LIVE IN LOCAL. SHE’S BEEN DOING SOME RESEARCH ON THIS. LISA, WHO KNEW? YEAH, BOTANIST FOR SURE. MAYBE SOME HORTICULTURE ARTISTS AND OTHER SCIENTISTS. BUT THIS WAS NEWS TO ME AS WELL. SO IT IS VERY SCIENCE Y. BUT TO MAKE IT IN GENERAL TERMS, BASICALLY MALE TREES MAKE UP THE POLLEN. THE FEMALE TREES HAVE THE SEEDS. NOW YOU MAY BE SAYING THEN WHY NOT PLANT ALL FEMALE TREES AND WE CAN AVOID ALL THESE HEALTH ISSUES CAUSED BY THE POLLEN. BUT IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE. ALL NATURE IN SPRINGTIME TIME, THE BIRDS, THE FLOWERS AND THE POLLEN. THIS IS LIKE THE WORST SPRING THAT I FEEL LIKE WE’VE HAD IN THE PAST 3 OR 4 YEARS. THERE IS A PRICE TO PAY FOR ALL THIS BEAUTY, AND THE FOLKS SOAKING UP THE SUN AT HOMEWOOD PARK ARE PAYING IT. LAST WEEK I LOST MY VOICE COMPLETELY. I WAS JUST COUGHING NONSTOP. I WAS WAKING UP WITH A TICKLE IN MY THROAT THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE ENTIRE NIGHT. IT’S BEEN ACTUALLY QUITE BRUTAL THIS YEAR. I REALLY GO HOME SNEEZING. I’M LIKE SNEEZING LIKE EVERY MINUTE. AND IT KIND OF AFFECTS LIKE MY SLEEP BECAUSE I HAVE TO WAKE UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND GO SNEEZE OR BLOW MY NOSE. FOR THE MOST PART, IT’S THE MALE TREES PRODUCING ALL THAT SNEEZING, INDUCING POLLEN. SO IT MAKES SENSE THAT YOU CAN CUT DOWN ON POLLEN PRODUCTION BY PLANTING FEWER MALE TREES AND MORE FEMALE TREES. SOME HORTICULTURAL LISTS HAVE SUGGESTED THIS, BUT HOMEWOOD ALLERGIST DOCTOR MIKE POLCARI, SAYS WE HAVE A LOT OF NATURAL FOREST HERE WITH A MIX OF ALL TREES, SO IT’S PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO AVOID THE POLLEN TO AN EXTENT. YOU CAN TRY TO, YOU KNOW, AVOID YOUR TRIGGER. BUT THE PROBLEM IS THAT, YOU KNOW, TREE POLLEN TRAVELS FOR 50 MILES. AND WE LIVE IN BIRMINGHAM, SO YOU’RE KIND OF STUCK. DOCTOR POLCARI SUGGESTS YOU STAY ON TOP OF YOUR MEDICATIONS. MOST OF WHICH ARE NOW OVER THE COUNTER AND RIGHT OUT THE ROUGH SPRING MONTHS. NOW, THE GOOD NEWS IS WE’RE AT THE TAIL END OF THE TREE POLLEN SEASON. BUT THE BAD NEWS IS THAT’S JUST GOING TO LEAD US RIGHT INTO THE GRASS SEASON. SO YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU HAVE YOUR MEDS CLOSE AT HAND. PRETTY MUCH. WE’RE ALWAYS IN ALLERGY SEA
'You're kind of stuck': Allergist explains the roots of Central Alabama's pollen problem
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Updated: 10:29 PM CDT Apr 23, 2024
Did you know trees have a gender? There are boy trees and girl trees and you'll never guess which one is to blame for the pollen. It’s the male trees. It’s not something everyone knows. Generally, male trees have the pollen, the female trees have seeds. So, why not just plant all female trees and hence avoid all the health issues the pollen causes? Well, it's not that simple.Allergist, Dr. Mike Polcari says, "This is like the worst spring that I feel like we've had in the past three or four years." As beautiful as the trees are, there’s a price to pay for that beauty. And the folks soaking up the sun at Homewood Park are paying it.Maggie Roberts says, "Last week, I lost my voice completely. I was just coughing nonstop. I was waking up with a tickle in my throat throughout the whole entire night. It's been actually quite brutal this year."Lauren Robinson agrees, "I really go home sneezing. I'm, like, sneezing, like, every minute, and it kind of affects, like, my sleep because I have to wake up in the middle of the night and go sneeze or blow my nose."For the most part, it's the male trees producing all that sneezing-inducing pollen. So, it makes sense that you can cut down on pollen production by planting fewer male trees and more female trees. Some horticulturalists have suggested this. But Dr. Polcari says we have a lot of natural forests here with a mix of all trees, so it's practically impossible to avoid the pollen. "To an extent you can try to avoid your trigger, but the problem is that, you know, tree pollen travels for 50 miles and we live in Birmingham, so you're kind of stuck," he said.Dr. Polcari suggests you stay on top of your medications, most of which are now over the counter, and ride out the rough spring months. The good news is we're at the tail end of the tree pollen season. But the bad news is, that leads us right into the grass season. So stock up on those allergy meds.
HOMEWOOD, Ala. — Did you know trees have a gender? There are boy trees and girl trees and you'll never guess which one is to blame for the pollen. It’s the male trees. It’s not something everyone knows.
Generally, male trees have the pollen, the female trees have seeds. So, why not just plant all female trees and hence avoid all the health issues the pollen causes? Well, it's not that simple.
Allergist, Dr. Mike Polcari says, "This is like the worst spring that I feel like we've had in the past three or four years."
As beautiful as the trees are, there’s a price to pay for that beauty. And the folks soaking up the sun at Homewood Park are paying it.
Maggie Roberts says, "Last week, I lost my voice completely. I was just coughing nonstop. I was waking up with a tickle in my throat throughout the whole entire night. It's been actually quite brutal this year."
Lauren Robinson agrees, "I really go home sneezing. I'm, like, sneezing, like, every minute, and it kind of affects, like, my sleep because I have to wake up in the middle of the night and go sneeze or blow my nose."
For the most part, it's the male trees producing all that sneezing-inducing pollen. So, it makes sense that you can cut down on pollen production by planting fewer male trees and more female trees. Some horticulturalists have suggested this. But Dr. Polcari says we have a lot of natural forests here with a mix of all trees, so it's practically impossible to avoid the pollen.
"To an extent you can try to avoid your trigger, but the problem is that, you know, tree pollen travels for 50 miles and we live in Birmingham, so you're kind of stuck," he said.
Dr. Polcari suggests you stay on top of your medications, most of which are now over the counter, and ride out the rough spring months. The good news is we're at the tail end of the tree pollen season. But the bad news is, that leads us right into the grass season. So stock up on those allergy meds.
