The big news around the state is
that temperatures plummeted into the
low twenties on successive nights in
Tennessee. Normally these temperatures
do not have any negative impact
on plant species during the winter
months since most plants lie dormant
and are well prepared for freezing temperatures.
Unfortunately, these freezing
marks occurred during the second
week of April, well after the spring
green-up. To make matters worse, most
Tennessee tree species were in their
“flowering” mode which is a necessary
component for fruit production. The
fruit of many hardwood trees, also
called mast, may have been killed off.
In other words, come fall there may
not be much acorn or nut production
throughout most of the state.
Since many animal species rely
heavily on mast, especially acorns,
there may be widespread effects of the
mast failure. If a failure does occur,
game species such as squirrel, deer,
turkey, and bear will be more active
during the day, seeking out alternative
food sources. This may lead to
increased harvest since the animals will
be more exposed during the hunting
season, so don’t be surprised if previous
harvest records are exceeded in
2007. Regardless of the outcome, it’s
Mother Nature’s way of controlling the
population.
What will the 2007 mast year look
like? Only time will tell.