Q: I have a problem with acorns dropping in my groundcover beds. Would a pre-emergent inhibit their sprouting in spring? We spend soooo much time on our hands and knees pulling oak “babies”.

A: Weed expert Dr. Mark Czarnota says he’s not aware of a pre-emergent that is labeled to control oak seedlings. In my opinion, you could try one of the pre-emergent products like trifluralin (Preen) or benefin + oryzalin (Amaze), which control broadleafed weeds, and see how they do. I’d be very interested in your results.