Itchy eyes? Goldenrod isn’t the problem

When I was growing up, my younger sister had terrible allergies in August and usually for the first couple of weeks of school. A neighbor told my mother that she should remove the goldenrod growing in the backyard because that caused allergies. Mom pulled out the beautiful golden plumes, but my sister’s watery eyes, sneezing and general irritability in late summer persisted.

As a young adult, I developed “seasonal allergies.” Starting about the first week of August, I wake up every morning with itchy eyes, runny nose and a “stuffed up” feeling. The feeling lasts until the first hard frost.

But goldenrod isn’t the problem. And it wasn’t my sister’s problem either. The problem is the ragweed pollen.

Plants produce pollen to fertilize seeds so they can reproduce. Some plants produce pollen that is “wind-borne.” Wind-borne pollen is very small and light-weight. It travels far and wide on the wind. Ragweed produces wind-borne pollen. Ragweed produces lots and lots of pollen, typically in early or mid August (depending upon the weather). Once the ragweed pollen starts to blow, it goes everywhere, and those of us with seasonal allergies start to suffer.

Other plants, like goldenrod, produce pollen that is “insect-borne.” These plants tend to have beautiful flowers that attract bees, butterflies and other pollinators to them to feed. The pollen sticks to a feeding insect’s body, and when it moves on to the next plant, some of the pollen rubs off. If the insect happens to have landed on the same species of plant, it fertilizes that plant.

Insect-borne pollen tends to be waxy and heavy so that it sticks well to insects, and doesn’t drop off as they fly from plant to plant. In other words, insect-borne pollen doesn’t blow around much, so it isn’t the cause of seasonal allergies.

This is good news for people who grow native plants. Native species like sunflowers, milkweeds, coneflowers, goldenrod and asters – the ones with the beautiful flowers – produce only insect-borne pollen. That doesn’t mean that if I plant my yard with only flowering native plants my allergies will go away. There are just too many other plants out there adding their pollen to the air.

So, which plants are the biggest problem in this area? Ragweed, common and giant, are the worst offenders in this area during the summer allergy season. A square mile of ragweed will release up to 16 tons of pollen, and that pollen can be carried on the wind up to 100 miles from its source! During spring and early summer, Timothy grass, orchard grass and Kentucky bluegrass produce large amounts of pollen, causing discomfort for many people.

What is an allergy sufferer to do?

- Avoid working outside in the morning and early afternoon when pollen levels tend to be highest.

- Do not dry clothes or bedding outdoors – they will pick up pollen.

- Wash your hands and face regularly to remove pollen if working outdoors.

- Check pollen counts in your area before working outside (pollen.com is a website that allows people to enter a zip code to see which pollens are prevalent in their community and how high the levels are).

Keep in mind that the season is short, and relief – in the form of the first hard frost – will be here soon. Too soon.