Mast crops are spotty this year, except for acorns. Soft mast, like apples and wild cherries, seems to be minimal to none in most areas. Soft mast blooms were definitely impacted by spring frost.

For most wildlife, hard mast usually has more benefits than soft mast. Acorns, hickory nuts and beechnuts are foods full of fats and carbohydrates, which turn to fat reserves and get wild game through the cold, winter months, especially when food is less available.

Steve Sherk Jr.

Columnists

Every year is different when it comes to mast crop production. Rarely will all mast trees produce an abundance of crops in the same year. Last year, we had a tremendous crop of soft mast and hard mast. Apples, thorn apples and black cherries were abundant just about everywhere. However, the only oaks that produced heavy crops in my neck of the woods were red oaks in the higher elevations. In mountain country, elevation plays a major part in mast production as well as what face of the hill the mast trees are located. Air temperatures can vary depending on elevation as well as slope direction. Temperature typically decreases around 5 degrees for every 1,000 feet of elevation. You can have slightly above freezing temperatures down low in the valleys, which will have very little effect on mast buds, but mast trees in higher elevations will experience colder temperatures anywhere from 5 to 10 degrees cooler. This can have a major impact on high elevation mast production. These types of situations are why we see differences in mast production by elevation.

A phenomenon that we often see in the mountains is frost only happening at lower elevations. In the evening through early morning, cold air will fall and settle into the valleys and bottomlands, while the warm air will rise into higher elevations. The way cold air can settle into lower ground often produces low elevation frost, which tends to have a major impact on apple trees since a lot of apple orchards are along creek bottoms and valleys.

Another key factor to keep in mind is that north- and east-facing hills tend to hold cooler air, due to the lack of sunlight they receive. Although oaks don’t generally live on north and east slopes, you will still find other mast trees in these areas that struggle to produce fruit, due to the likelihood of freezing temperatures. South- and west-facing slopes are usually the best for mast producers.

Fortunately, this year our oak blossoms bloomed well after any chance of heavy frost. This has made for a tremendous crop of acorns in all elevations. It can also be a factor on next year’s acorn crop because red oaks and pin oaks take two years to develop acorns. If all goes well, in 2026, we should see  plentiful red oak production just about anywhere in the valleys and hills

For hunters, the challenge this year will be staying on game. Acorns will be everywhere and wildlife won’t be concentrated in small areas. When you have multiple oak species produce acorns, as well as acorn production throughout all elevations, it can be very difficult to locate where animals are feeding. The feeding patterns can change daily and they can literally find food anywhere.

An abundance of acorns is still a benefit for hunters and wildlife. I always find better, healthier activity for most game species in areas with a heavy acorn crop. For whitetails, I tend to see much stronger rutting activity where there’s plentiful acorns, which allow bucks to build fat reserves at a fast rate, which in return, allows bucks to be more active earlier in the rutting season as well as throughout the entirety of the breeding season.

Despite a lack of other mast crops produced this year, in my opinion, acorns are the best food source for whitetails, turkeys, bears and squirrels. All other mast types are just icing on the cake. Some of my best seasons as a hunter have been during years when we had a banner acorn crop.