Acorns Driving me NUTS

[TractorGuy]

Anybody else have an oak over their house? Dadgum acorns falling and rolling down the roof is getting old. Sure glad I don't have a metal roof.

Rumor has it that lots of acorns means we will have a severe winter. We have had lots of acorns every year but seems like more than ever.

 

[Dftodd]

We've been covered up with them. Broke out the blower and attacked the driveway the other day. Concrete driveway looked like a gravel driveway with a 1/2" deep layer of crushed acorns on top of it.

 

[mddorange]

I cut down any limbs around/over the house and driveway. Problem solved.

 

[dragoneggs]

I hear you JD. Trees are not meant to be near houses. Errr... I mean houses aren't meant to be near mature trees. I have a beautiful large Sequoia tree that is way too close to my house and it is menacing. Roots are now messing with my drain to my septic, the needles are clogging my gutters and decking, the permanent shade is promoting the thickest moss I have seen.

But it is a beautiful tree and they are extremely rare around here, so it gets whacked a bit when I can't take it anymore, but I don't have the heart to cut it down.

 

[plowhog]

Here is one tree-- I have about 8-10 of these in the vicinity of the house and outbuildings. I have thousands of acorns on the ground-- been thinking of planting a few here and there.

The picture was taken during some recent trimming-- the lift has a 90 ft reach.

 

[mpham]

This year my oaks barely dropped acorns at all. Usually have to use the power broom to get them off the lawn. We have been crazy wet here this year.

 

[Diggin It]

Acorns don't bother me. I don't even notice them. I got hickory nuts near the size of golfballs. Try walking across a field of thousands of those.

 

[Oldoak]

Acorns don't bother me. I don't even notice them. I got hickory nuts near the size of golfballs. Try walking across a field of thousands of those.

Ha! Try walking around a back yard full of Black Walnuts so thick that when we rake them up, I carry them away by the F.E.B. loads. Of course not every year do the trees bear that heavy of crop.

And in front of the house are Red Oak trees. Like walking on marbles in the Fall. The squirrels and Deer make short work of the acorns.

It's all part of our rural living and co-existing with nature and wildlife.

 

[Oaktree]

This year my oaks barely dropped acorns at all. Usually have to use the power broom to get them off the lawn. We have been crazy wet here this year.

There was an article in the paper recently about how oaks go thru cycles of acorn production and this year the red oaks in general put out very few, as opposed to last year when they had a banner year. The article also noted that white oaks weren't affected as much as the reds...can't confirm or deny...they don't grow this far north...only reds here.

Apparently last year's bumper crop of acorns caused a similar boom in the number of squirrels and other rodents, and that their population is likely to crash this year as there isn't enough food.

 

[Bird]

I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one being driven crazy by acorns. For quite some time now, I've been blowing off the driveway and walk with my EGO leaf blower EVERY day! Now I figure we've got too many laws, but I'd sure be in favor of a law prohibiting planting a live oak tree within a hundred feet of a house.:laughing: One live oak, in the backyard, was so close to the house that it would fill the rain gutter and stop it up. I finally had that live oak removed. But the one in the front yard is another matter. I like the shade and I've had it professionally pruned 3 or 4 times, but it's grown enough that it can drop acorns in the rain gutter across the front of the house. Last year I raked up, probably 20-25 gallons of acorns and hardly made a dent in what was there. And now, there's not a spot in my front yard that you could put a foot or hand down without covering acorns.

And yes, the squirrels are the only ones enjoying my live oak tree and the ground under the tree.