March Pollen

The spring tree pollen season continues. It goes into high gear in March and remains at high levels through April as the local trees go through their annual reproductive cycle. Typically eastern red cedar and elm pollen are still present in the atmosphere in high concentrations. Both types gradually decrease throughout the month and are often gone from the atmosphere by the end of March. Because of variety of trees that are pollinating by mid-March, the total atmospheric concentrations are higher than February. The following are the most important species that typically begin pollinating in March:

Maple (Acer rubrum and A. negundo)

Sycamore (Platanus americana)

Ash (Fraxinus americana and F. pennsylvanica)

Cottonwood (Populus deltoides and P. alba)

Hackberry (Celtis laevigata and C. occidentalis)

Birch (Betula nigra)

Oak (Quercus spp.)

Mulberry (Morus spp.)

From this list special attention should be paid to oak. There are 26 species of oaks that are native to Oklahoma. In addition, others species are used as ornamentals. Oak pollen is allergenic and it is frequently the most numerous pollen on a cumulative yearly basis.