Acorn Avalanche: Here Is Why Illinois Yards Are a Nutty Mess This Fall

No, you are not losing your mind. There are WAY more acorns in your yard this Fall, and there is a scientific reason why.

A Big, Nutty Headache

Each fall my dad wages war on squirrels and I truly believe he is about one bucket of acorns away from totally losing it and setting his front yard on fire this year.

You see, my dad is OBSESSED with cleaning up the acorns, leaves, and branches that the squirrels knock out of the tree in my parent's front yard, and this year he is losing the battle...severely. He spends hours each day cleaning up the squirrels' mess and then wakes in the morning to discover it's worse than the day before.

Do the squirrels in my parent's yard specifically hate my Dad, or is there another reason the acorns are so out of control this year?

Turns out, the massive mess is not really the squirrels' fault, it's Mother Nature's.

The Reason There Are So Many Acorns in Illinois This Fall

Remember the mild winter we all enjoyed last year? Experts say that could be the reason Illinois is dealing with a mass population of acorns this fall.

Experts call this phenomenon a "mast seeding event" when "some species of trees and shrubs produce a bumper crop of their fruits or nuts", and apparently, it happens every couple of years.

Jessica Turner-Skoff, science communication leader at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois recently told the Chicago Sun-Times;

One possible explanation is “predator sedation". This means oak trees might produce an overabundance of acorns so that animals won’t eat them all, allowing some of those seeds to grow into its own tree.

So more trees could be a good thing, but more food for animals like squirrels and mice also means we will likely see more of those babies in the spring. Great.

READ MORE: 5 Natural Signs That a Bad Winter is Coming to Illinois