Oak trees (home, neighborhood, construction)

[Bigfoot424]

Just curious if anyone else with Oak trees in their yards are experiencing this in your area. I've lived in my current home since 86 and we have a bunch of huge/mature Oaks in the yard and neighborhood. For weeks now, well before the Cicadas awoke, I've been picking up a large amount of what I'll call Oak leaf bunches. These leaves, sometimes dead and sometimes still green, are attached to a twig. I see them in the trees and they fall everyday. When the wind blows hard or it rains even more fall. I spent an hour today picking them up in the yard and have been doing this for weeks. I see them in my neighbors yard as well so I know it's not just my yard. I know I've seen these in the past but never this many.

Anyone else?

[Lucky★]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

Just curious if anyone else with Oak trees in their yards are experiencing this in your area. I've lived in my current home since 86 and we have a bunch of huge/mature Oaks in the yard and neighborhood. For weeks now, well before the Cicadas awoke, I've been picking up a large amount of what I'll call Oak leaf bunches. These leaves, sometimes dead and sometimes still green, are attached to a twig. I see them in the trees and they fall everyday. When the wind blows hard or it rains even more fall. I spent an hour today picking them up in the yard and have been doing this for weeks. I see them in my neighbors yard as well so I know it's not just my yard. I know I've seen these in the past but never this many.

Anyone else?

I think squirrels do this when they are building nests.

[weezycom]

Mild winter, bumper crop of squirrels.

[ICS67]

Same thing here. I have about 15 red oaks and a couple of white oaks, and I've also been picking up oak leaf bunches/ clusters -- a lot in the spring, then a pause, and now again. I'm pretty sure it's the squirrels, who (to judge from the way their nests seem to fall out of trees at regular intervals) went to construction management school at the Developers Association of Greater Northern Virginia

[Bigfoot424]

Hmmm. I would have never guessed Squirrels but sounds reasonable to me.

[Carlingtonian]

I've seen this recently with our oak trees--not every day, but periodically. I thought it was from rain and wind.

[Jon_In_NOVA]

We have the same thing the past few weeks as well. I chalked it up to the storms...we do have a lot of squirrels; much to my dog's dismay.

[mdcrim]

I thought it was from the squirrels. Every time my dogs chase them up trees the squirrels send a few twigs with leaves raining down.

[Bigfoot424]

I spoke with an Arborist today and he said these bunches of dead and sometime live Oak leaves were caused by the invasion of Cicadas. I can believe this as we had an incredible amount of these and not enough squirrels to do this. I have many Oak trees and they are all over the trees. At least what hasn't fallen already.

[mdcrim]

Interesting- we never saw one cicada but I've got the oak twigs all over my yard. Hmmm.