UK Nature and Environment

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Reason our oak trees are currently flooding the UK with acorns (www.dailyrecord.co.uk)

submitted 1 day ago by GreyShuck@feddit.uk to c/nature@feddit.uk

6 comments fedilink hide all child comments

This autumn, you may notice an unusually large number of acorns scattered under every oak tree. This isn't a figment of your imagination; it's a natural occurrence known as a mast year, and it's currently taking place across the UK.

A mast year is a biological event in which certain tree species, notably oaks and beeches, produce a significantly larger crop of seeds in unison. It's not just a minor increase; during a mast year, an oak tree can shed thousands, sometimes tens of thousands, more acorns than usual.

These abundant harvests are followed by years of much lower, or even negligible, acorn production. This fluctuation is a smart and ancient evolutionary tactic.

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[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 1 points 13 hours ago

Squirrel shit?

[–] Pipster@lemmy.blahaj.zone 8 points 1 day ago

I thought i just hadn't gone out enough the last few years to notice it. The path into town is like walking on marbles.

[–] NochMehrG@feddit.org 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Some apple trees do that too! Including break years.

[–] sauerkrautsaul@lemmus.org 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

is that why I LITERALLY cant walk through my garden with the number of granby apples on the ground this year?

my wife (my wife!! (borat!)) already made apple butter and applesauce and we gave away a huge box to a guy who makes cider also, and we've gotten charged over weight fees in the compost bin twice now getting rid of them

[–] Wahots@pawb.social 3 points 22 hours ago (1 children)

Apple bread and apple pies are a great way to use apples too.

Have some friends over for a sports game, gaming night, or cribbage night and bake an assload of apple pies with them, that people can take home. It's a fun activity that people can get in on, and real apples in apple pie taste surprisingly good (especially if you skin the apples!)

This is similar-ish to the apple bread recipe we use.

https://jessiebakestreats.com/apple-cinnamon-bread/#recipe

[–] sauerkrautsaul@lemmus.org 3 points 22 hours ago

yo im sure the apple bread is lovely.. but if you knew me irl you would never suggest I invite my friends over for a baking night, I assure you. not exactly my lane.. I still havent cleaned up the broken glass bottle from outside my front door from the other night

wifeo makes a few pies at thanksgiving (we're in ireland for a long time but she's seemingly happy to have been roped into making the meal)