Cut down on hay fever from spring/summer gardening

Around two million Australians get hay fever or some other allergy – bouts of sneezing, wheezing, coughing, runny nose, skin rashes and hives – between August and March as they tend to their spring/summer gardens.

The pollens and moulds from grasses and plants cause hay fever requiring a spring and summer of antihistamine tablets and nasal sprays.

It’s not so much the plants in the garden themselves, but the pollens their flowers produce that cause the allergies. The tiny pollen grains react with the membranes of the eyes, nose, sinuses, and airways to produce the symptoms of hay fever and asthma.

The worst offenders are those plants that pollinate via the wind, with mainly introduced plants from the northern hemisphere – such as deciduous trees – that are wind pollinators.

Plants which use showy flowers and sweet-scented nectar to attract birds and insects, to spread the pollen cause less problems. Most brightly flowered plants are insect or bird pollinated, as are Australian native plants.

Wind pollinators – especially those growing near doors and windows – should be replaced with the bird and insect pollinators.

Grasses are almost all wind-pollinated and heavy producers of pollen in spring, especially cool climate grasses like rye grass. This fills the air in spring with just the stuff to cause itchy eyes and sneezing. Mowing them disturbs and scatters the pollen grains, which is why you may have noticed hay fever and asthma is worse after mowing lawns. A mask should be worn when mowing in spring.

Lawn can be replaced with native grasses – they don’t produce much pollen and grow slowly, so they don’t need frequent mowing – or by native ground cover instead.

Weeds are also heavy pollinators and commonly cause allergies – asthma weed especially. Weed regularly, using a mask and gloves.
Moulds are another common cause of garden allergies both from mould spores and/or tiny mites feeding on the mould. Avoid gardening in damp, shaded areas where mould thrives.

Compost is another favoured habitat, so wear a mask when turning the compost heap, or get rid of it and buy an organic mix or fertiliser from a nursery instead.

If prone to allergies, gardening is best done on cool, cloudy days and best in the morning before the breezes begin to blow about the mould spores and pollen.

On windy days it’s wise to stay indoors. And don’t hang out washing on windy days; pollen sticks to the washing, and ends up inside.

For more information visit www.asthma.org.au