FORT SMITH (KFSM)—Some unusual things are happening with the early warm weather this year.
Although it is still cold and flu season, but allergy season is off to an early start.
“I've seen bad seasons, but this is the first year it's been quite so early,” said Dr. Aubrey Ziegler.
Ziegler has been an allergist for almost two decades. He said cedar and maple pollen are already starting to make things miserable for allergy sufferers.
“The things that typically hit us in March are now beginning to hit us in mid-February,” he said.
If you start experiencing symptoms, he recommends over-the-counter antihistamines or nasal steroids.
“When those don't work, we ask people to come see us,” Ziegler said. “We can test them to see which allergies are the problems, and then there are a few different things that we can do.”
A mild winter also brings out the bugs earlier. Farmer Jamie Patterson said he is preparing to spray for more insects.
The warmer temperatures are keeping lawn services busy as well.
“Right now we're getting people calling every day because they walk outside, they see their yard it's patchy because it's just weeds mainly popping up,” said Randy Batson, First Cut Lawn Services owner. “You have a few varieties that are growing, but it's mainly weeds right now.”
He said he normally doesn’t see weeds growing until mid-March. However, he said dry weather could hurt business later in the year.