SAN ANTONIO - It has been a sniffily, sneezey, wheezing start to the new year for many San Antonians with mountain cedar hitting record highs. Remember, any cedar count over 500 is considered heavy.
The mountain cedar forecasts are something that we do in cooperation with Dr. Paul Ratner and Sylvana Research, but it's not just those forecasts that are important, but it's also those daily pollen counts that help track what's flying around in the air.
For mountain cedar sufferers, a sight like pollen flying off a cedar tree can bring tears to the eyes and drainage to the nose. Keeping track of what's happening out here can make a difference between hanging in there and or hanging out at the doctor's office.
Allergy specialist Doctor Paul Ratner has been tracking pollen counts in San Antonio for more than 20 years. He has a little black box that calculates pollen numbers for trees like mountain cedar. Dr. Ratner says the box is actually a pretty simple device.
"What happens is the air that's sucked in, the pollen is heavier than the air, so it will stick to the slide and the air will flow out," explained Dr. Ratner.
The pollen sticks to the slide that has a special greasy substance on it. It takes twelve counts over 24 hours with the final number ending up being the peak count during that time.
But what's just as important is the mountain cedar forecast. It's a prediction two days out that's tied closely to the direction and speed of the wind.
Ratner explains, "Based on that and based on your weather forecasts, what kind of conditions we're going to have, dry versus wet, we come up with a guess-timate."
Also in the calculation is how far along we are in the season. If it's late, cedar trees won't carry as much pollen. It's a good general forecast that gives cedar sufferers a good tool to plan activities and even medications.
Last year was the first time for the mountain cedar forecast for Dr. Ratner. Comparing the forecast to the actual counts, his accuracy was about 68 percent. So not bad. Definitely high enough to pay attention to.
