It’s the trees. That’s why your eyes are itchy and your nose is sneezing.

The spring allergy season has begun and tree pollen is already high today. It’s expected to get worse later this week, and the Weather Channel forecasts it will be even more out of hand next week.

Allergies and allergy-related asthma are a regular annoyance, and sometimes a danger, for some 100 million people, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.

The sort-of-good news is Baltimore isn’t the worst, allergy-wise. It’s pretty average on the foundation’s pollen index of 100 U.S. cities, with the 10 worst cities mostly to the south. The index is drawn from pollen counts, use of over-the-counter-medications and visits to allergy specialists.

The less-good news is that the pollen situation is getting worse across the country, particularly in cities.

“Due to climate change, growing seasons start earlier and last longer than they did just 30 years ago,” says the foundation’s 2025 Allergy Capitals Report.

“Some parts of the United States now experience pollen (tree, grass, or weed) year-round,” it says. “Warmer temperatures also trap heat in urban areas, increasing air pollution, and stimulating pollen production. For people with seasonal allergies, climate change fuels a perfect storm of conditions that make allergy symptoms worse.”

A lot of cities haven’t helped themselves by planting a lot of so-called male trees, a behavior called “botanical sexism.”

Those trees produce a lot of pollen, but were often chosen because they are tidier than their female counterparts. The females produce pods and flowers, which they drop all over the sidewalks.

Baltimore’s parks officials have said they plant a lot of , monoecious trees, which means a single tree will have both male and female flowers. That results in pollen blowing from branch to branch, rather than among trees or carried by bees or other insects.

And the relatively higher temps, along with an abundance of concrete and other impervious surfaces, keep the pollen bouncing around.

You’re right to blame the trees for now, but soon the grass allergies will start and last through summer. Then the weeds allergies arrive by fall.

What the experts see

Allergies can have similar symptoms to colds and other infections, and it can be tough to tell them apart.

Common symptoms of allergies include sneezing, runny nose and congestion, according to Dr. Jonathan Matz, an allergy, asthma and immunology specialist at LifeBridge Health.

They are not accompanied by a fever.

Colds and other viruses are more likely to have a fever, cough or sore throat. They are also usually gone in a week, while allergies can last far longer, he said.

“The hallmark of allergy season is itching,” he said. “If you’re itching, it’s not a cold or the flu.”

He also said after a tough flu season, those cases have waned. So have cases of COVID-19. That means much of what’s causing suffering now is allergies.

And beware, the tree pollen season peak is usually in the next week or so.

But then, thankfully, it will trend downward. (The allergy season is longer due to climate change, he said, only because tree season starts earlier on the calendar — and weed season starts later.)

What can you do

According to the allergy foundation, Matz and others, there are steps you can take:

• Track the pollen with one of many cellphone applications or websites online. Stay inside in air conditioning when possible. When outside, cover your eyes with sunglasses, head with a hat and nose and mouth with a mask.
• Take off your shoes at your door to minimize pollen tracked indoors. Change your clothes. And shower at night to avoid taking the yellow menace to bed.
• Get ahead or, or at least on top of, symptoms with over-the-counter antihistamines, including Zyrtec, Allegra and Claritin, plus allergy eye drops.
• See an allergist if you or your child are really uncomfortable, and seek immediate assistance for trouble breathing.