While cleaning foliage from your yard this fall, don't be so quick to trash it.
The Forest Preserve District of Kane County is asking residents for acorns to help replenish the county's dwindling White Oaks population.
“To give these areas a boost, the District is now growing trees from seed,” said Director of Natural Resources Drew Ullberg in a statement. “Each year, the Forest Preserve District plants hundreds oak saplings. We currently have over 3,000 acres that need trees, and we can definitely put the seed to good use.”
The district's natural resource staff is collecting acorns from White, Black and Bur oaks to grow trees from the seeds, according to a news release from Kane County.
The collection was launched after discovering the White Oaks were not reproducing well in the wild, the release said. Kane County cites various factors including shading in the woods, loss of habitat, and disease.
The Forest Preserve District of Kane County asks that anyone with large, old trees dropping acorns collect them in a paper bag. They warn not to use a plastic bag because it could cause mold.
Bags should be marked with the tree type, your address and date the seed was collected. The bags can then be dropped off at the Forest Preserve District headquarters at 1996 S. Kirk Rd., Ste. 320, Geneva. Anyone with additional questions can call their office at 630-232-5980.
