Temperatures are heating up across the region this week.

Have you noticed your eyes being itchy lately? Scratchy throat? Runny nose? Constant sneezing? If so, you are likely dealing with our high pollen count!

If you’ve been in Texas more than five minutes, you know pollen plagues the state year-round.

Almost faster than a sneeze, my 100-year-old water oak tree in the front yard is full of catkins, those flowering clusters of pollen.

This is how to check the pollen and mold count in Houston if you're feeling your allergies kicking up.

Medium pollen counts for us, but tree is heavyAt KPRC 2, we’re dedicated to keeping Houstonians informed. As part of our Ask 2 series, the newsroom will answer your questions about all things Houston. Question: When will tree pollen let up? Answer: The Houston Health Department is currently reporting extremely heavy counts of tree pollen. According to an allergy guide by Zyrtec, tree pollen tends to be high from March-May, before dropping to moderate levels in June and low levels in October.

As part of our Ask 2 series, the newsroom will answer your questions about all things Houston. Question: Why is pollen so bad right now? Answer: Warm, dry, and windy weather and climates with little or no rain have high pollen levels, according to Pollen.com. The 5 Day Pollen Allergy Forecast is low Tuesday and Wednesday and reaches medium-high levels Thursday-Saturday. Send it our way, and we will try to hunt down an answer.

A lot of allergies can be very severe, leading to headaches and congestion, often being mistaken for an illness and, in some cases, may lead to your employer or child’s school requesting you to stay home. It’s not the first thing you think about but there are some reports of people having sneezing,” said Dr. Stacey Silvers, from Aspire Allergy & Sinus. Typically during this time of year brings more allergy sufferers into Aspire Allergy and Sinus. Silvers said more than ever, people will want to stay on top of their health. Some are going to be sent home because they have allergy symptoms and it’s hard to tell the difference between that and potential coronavirus infections,” Silvers said.

But as you see in the maps below, most of the rain on both Friday and Saturday favored areas north and west of the I-10 corridor. Normally, when we get multiple chances for rain, some other areas may get a shot at some natural grass fertilizer. Some of the reason for that was the overall positioning of the jet stream in the higher part of the atmosphere that was oriented from southwest to northeast. Contrast that to when a surface cold front plows through and the rain basically follows the direction of where the front is coming in from. We will get another round of rain coming next weekend, but there’s some real early summer heat lurking mid-week as well.

HOUSTON – People with seasonal allergies have been reaching for the tissue a lot more lately as pollen season begins in the Houston area. Here are three things you should know about the region’s spring allergy season. Spring allergy season is known for heavy tree pollen and grass pollen. Pollen CountWith tree pollen being the highest offered it is helpful to know what trees are the current offenders. Know what symptoms are common for allergy sufferersWhen someone is getting sick, there is typically a slow ramp-up in symptoms.

HOUSTON – If you’re noticing that your eyes are a tad extra itchy or you’re grabbing for the Kleenex, it’s not just you. The tree pollen count for the greater Houston area has recently flipped into the “heavy” category with the biggest culprit being cedar pollen that generally blows in from the Hill Country around Austin and San Antonio. The rain we are experiencing Wednesday should help wash off some of the pollen and help with the sniffles! Mountain cedar pollen is very common across Central Texas and when we see a northwest wind, it’s a good bet we’ll see those numbers spike again. Houston Pollen Count for WednesdayThe pollination season for the shrubs and trees is generally from December through February.