Oh nuts, Kane asks public to help bolster acorn crop
Beacon-News Staff September 20, 2012 12:20PM
Kane County is asking homeowners to collect and donate their acorns to the Forest Preserve District.| Sun-Times Media File
Help plant
new oaks
The Kane County Forest Preserve is looking for volunteers to help plant oak trees at its Aurora West Forest Preserve.
The planting will begin at 10 a.m. Sept. 29 — National Public Lands Day 2012 — at the preserve at 40W032 Hankes Road, on Aurora’s West Side.
RSVP by calling 630-444-3064. For information, visit www.kaneforest.com or www.publiclandsday.org.
Maps
Updated: September 20, 2012 7:43PM
GENEVA — Kane County’s forest preserves are running low on acorns. So the Forest Preserve District is asking residents to collect, and then donate, the acorns that are littering their lawns.
The Forest Preserve District said Friday the natural resources staff is collecting acorns from white, black and bur oaks. Staff will then grow trees from the donated seeds to later plant in the preserves.
White oaks are not reproducing well in the wild because of several factors including shading in the woods, loss of habitat and disease, the Forest Preserve said.
“To give these areas a boost, the district is now growing trees from seed,” said Drew Ullberg, director of natural resources.
“Each year, the Forest Preserve District plants hundreds of oak saplings. We currently have over 3,000 acres that need trees, and we can definitely put the seed to good use.”
Residents who have large, old trees that are dropping abundant acorns are asked to collect the intact ones and put them in a brown paper bag. (People should avoid using plastic bags because the seed could mold. People are asked to pick out leaves, grass and twigs before bagging.) On the bag, write the tree type, your address, and the date seed was collected.
Bags of seeds may be dropped off at Forest Preserve District headquarters at 1996 S. Kirk Road, Suite 320 in Geneva. The Forest Preserve offices are on the third floor of the Fox Valley Ice Arena. People also can call the office at 630-232-5980 to arrange a pick-up.
The district will accept acorn donations through Oct. 12.
