Harrogate Borough Council‘s rewilding to encourage bees and other wildlife has delighted many in the district this summer.
But one group of long-suffering residents believe it could be exacerbating their hay fever.
The pollen count has been at its mid-summer peak recently, especially on warmer days.
Many areas of the district, including parts of the Stray, have been left to grow wild, resulting in more pollen than in previous years.
Stray Ferret reader Clare Winsor got in touch to say she suspects her family’s recent bouts of hay fever could be related to the longer grass and wildflowers.
She said:
“My family and I are really suffering from hay fever this year, much worse than we would normally.
“I think this may be due to an increase in pollen/seeds/allergens produced by the overgrown areas.”
“Not sure how right I am but could this be the reason so many are complaining of hay fever locally?”
Fellow hay fever sufferer Sophie McCallum also believes the longer grass is “definitely making it worse”.
She told the Stray Ferret:
“This year is the worst I’ve ever had it and have been really suffering every day.”
Read more:
- Harrogate’s ‘rewilding’: untidy or biodiversity boon?
- Harrogate district’s wild grass verges continue to divide opinion
However, some experts believe lockdown, rather than longer grass and wildflowers, could be a contributing factor because people are spending more time indoors.
Dr Naveen Puri, associate clinical director at Bupa Health Clinics, told Cosmopolitan magazine:
“Over the last year, social distancing restrictions have meant that we’ve spent more time indoors than perhaps we usually would.
“As a result, you may have been exposed to less pollen than usual, and this could make your hay fever feel worse.”
One Harrogate resident, Jerry Smith, playfully dismissed the claim that wildflowers increased hay fever and said he’s looking at the bigger picture.
He said:
“I wish for all biodiversity to be removed because it’s all giving me hayfever. I will continue to flourish as a human whilst the rest of the earth collapses.”
A council spokesman said:
“We have sympathy for hay fever sufferers, especially at this time of the year when the pollen count is higher and farmers are hay making.
“But we need to remember why we are leaving areas to grow and planting wildflowers.
“Pollinators, such as bees and butterflies, play a key role in sustaining the flora and fauna across the district.
“Sadly, they have been in decline for several years and we all need to play our part in supporting their habitats.”
