Yew and juniper pollen season in the air of Poland in 2019

Abstract

The study compares the yew and juniper pollen seasons in Bialystok, Bydgoszcz, Cracow, Katowice, Piotrkow Trybunalski, Opole, Szczecin, Zielona Gora, Warsaw, Wroclaw and Lublin in 2019. The investigations were carried out using the volumetric method (Hirst type pollen sampler). Seasonal Pollen Index (SPI) was estimated as the sum of daily average pollen concentrations in the given season. The yew pollination is mainly observed in February and March, while juniper pollination is mainly observed in March and April. Due to the morphological similarity of the pollen grains of both taxa, the pollen seasons of yew and juniper are considered together. The pollen season of yew/juniper started first in Szczecin, on the February 22nd. At the latest, a pollen season ended in Bialystok, Bydgoszcz, Zielona Gora, Warsaw and Lublin at the end April. The differences of pollen seasons duration were very considerable, from 20 to 63 days. The highest airborne concentration of 784 pollen grains/m3 was noted in Wroclaw on the March 7th. The maximum values of seasonal pollen count occurred between March 4th and 31st. The highest yew and juniper pollen allergen hazard occurred in 2019 in Lublin and Wroclaw and it was at least twice as high as other cities.