Although mountain cedar season has come to a close and many people consider winter in San Antonio the allergy season, the next group of pollens already has arrived with the beginning of spring.

Springtime is when the majority of the trees in San Antonio pollinate. Mountain cedar (winter) and fall elm (autumn) are two of the rare exceptions. The rest of the various trees pollinate once the weather starts to warm up, and this allergy season can stretch from late February through early May.

We have a wide variety of trees in San Antonio but the most dominant is definitely oak. Oak pollen usually starts in mid-March and lasts for almost two months. Most people can recognize when oak is pollinating as this is the tree responsible for the yellow powder that covers our cars, driveways and windows at this time of the year. In addition to pollinating for a longer period of time, oak pollen also reaches higher levels than the other springtime trees with pollen counts often reaching into the thousands.

Of course mountain cedar counts can reach 20,000 or more during the winter but for a springtime tree, oak is the most impressive.

Many other trees pollinate during the spring but these are usually only for a few weeks each and in lower amounts. Some of the most common are pecan, mulberry, hackberry and elm. Although not as dominant, if you are a person who happens to be sensitive to one of these trees, your allergy symptoms can be just as difficult.

Many patients ask me if they need to worry about the trees in their yard. Remember that pollen can float in the air for hundreds of miles! So even if you remove your own trees, you’re still exposed to every other tree in San Antonio.

If you are a tree pollen allergy sufferer, avoid outdoor activities early in the morning when pollen counts are usually the highest. Take your allergy medications and see a board-certified allergy and immunology provider for the best possible allergy care.