How the warm weather has created a ‘mast year’ with bumper crop of berries and acorns
Summer sunshine and subsequent rain has left the UK well-prepared for a bright and colorful autumn, as bountiful crops of acorns, horse chestnuts and blackberries arrive across the country.
National Trust experts have dubbed this the “year of the mast”; A cropping phenomenon that occurs every four years and in which certain trees produce abundant nuts and fruits.
John Deakin, the organisation’s trees and woodland manager, said: “As the climate has become more unpredictable in recent years, predicting autumn color has become more difficult.
“But this year, with the combination of fairly widespread rainfall in September and a particularly sluggish spring, we expect to see the trees begin to age for an extended period of time… resulting in abundant berries and nuts, as well as other pigments that give the leaves their autumn color.”
Many parks and gardens had initially entered a “fake autumn” due to the summer dry spell, but Sheffield Park and Garden’s head gardener Steve Feazey said: “Our trees have had a good drink and we’re now hopeful that our autumn show will be as fiery and spectacular as ever.”
Mr Feazey said cold, freezing nights in the coming weeks would also help bring out the orange colours.
Petworth House and Park in West Sussex has also reported a false start to autumn but says autumn colors are now coming along with a bumper crop of maize, chestnuts and beechnuts.
Professor Jane Memmott, an ecologist at the University of Bristol, said huge amounts of nutrients were coming into ecological systems and acorns and sweet chestnuts were particularly plentiful this summer.
He said England could see a set of conditions that would create the right environment for this to happen, allowing more crops to sprout and plenty to feed animals throughout the season. “People tend to think of all the birds and mammals, but there are also a lot of insects that feed on seeds,” he said.
In September, the National Trust said the weather also brought bountiful crops of apples, courgettes and pumpkins.
Experts say the hot summer even affects beverages, making grapes, berries and apples sweeter while boosting the alcohol content in cider and wine.
Bartosz Pinkosz, operations manager at The Summer Berry Company in West Sussex, said: “We have seen an extraordinary amount of berries this year – big, sweet and full flavoured, thanks to the constant sunshine and cool nights that allow the plants to regularly rest and develop.”
