Missouri trees producing more acorns during mast year
If you're walking along the many trails in the area, you might notice an extra crunch under your step recently. The Missouri Department of Conservation says that's because trees are producing extra nuts and fruits this year.
George Kipp, the Private Land Forestry Program Supervisor with MDC, says it all started with the wet spring we had. "We're experiencing a good mast here this year. We had very favorable climatic conditions this spring. We had a nice, cool, mild spring that really helped the trees get a lot of energy for pollination."
Mast is an old term for the fruits and nuts that fall from trees and become food for wildlife. Acorns, and other nuts like hickories and walnuts, are all called mast. Fruits like persimmons and pawpaws are called soft mast.
Some trees, like White Oak, don't produce nuts every year. This year, in what is known as a mast year, their cycle has aligned with other tree species to produce an overabundance of nuts and fruits. "We'll get a year when all the trees are in sync together. And that's why we're getting such a heavy abundance of acorns." Kipp says, "So all the white oak species are kind of pollinated together, you know, from previous years, and they really produce this year. The red oaks also are producing an abundance this year as far as things like hickories and black walnuts."
Trees mostly drop acorns and fruits for reproduction, but critters like squirrels and deer also eat them. Kipp says trees have evolved to overproduce mast every few years to ensure that enough acorns survive. "So a lot of these acorns hopefully will turn into new trees which will produce our next generation of forests. White oaks are a keystone species here in Missouri, and we really want a next generation of white oaks to come in for future generations to evolve." He said.
This process repeats across the food chain as well. The prey that eats mast will have more food this year, increasing the stock population for predators to feed on. "It's called predator satiation. So this year will be a very big year for prey species. Like a lot of your squirrels, your mice and all the things. So they're going to feast really good this year and, you know, so they'll produce a lot of babies that will then feed predators in the future." Kipp explains.
If you notice a lot of acorns around, the best thing is to leave them alone. They provide food for prey, and can provide habitat for insects.
But if you have some extra acorns lying around, Kipp has several ideas to make use of them. The Missouri Department of Conservation has a seed buying program where individuals can sell hard or soft mast, including acorns, black walnuts, or fruits like persimmons and pawpaw.
And did you know acorns are edible? "Acorns can actually make some delicious food if properly prepared." Kipp says, "We have a lot of recipes on our website where you can go and look up recipes on how to actually prepare acorns. You can make a wonderful flour from acorns, which makes it into very wonderful nutty bread."
