Question
Every year my liquid amber trees get a year older, I have to deal with  thousands of prickly pods .  They come off the tree from Nov all the way to May sometimes.  Is there any way I can keep them from growing at all or is there a way, chemically, to make the tree drop them all at once.  I know we spray zinc on almond trees to make them loose their leaves, would that work for liquid amber and their pods?  Tired of picking up pods all winter!

Answer
Hi Suzanne,
Thanx for your question.  Because the prickly pods are the result of the liquid amber's sexual reproduction cycle, I am not aware of a "birth control" method, so-to-speak.  I mean, not to be a smart alec, but that's basically what one would be trying to do, prevent the tree from ovulating and reproducing.  So, with that said, I'm not aware of any chemicals or other remedies to stop this however, I am not an expert on trees.  I'm advising you to contact Jim Hyland who is our resident tree expert here on All Experts.  He has many years of experience with the U.S. Forestry Service.  If anyone would know of an answer to your issue, Jim would.  You can access Jim by going back to Home/Garden, click on Trees and then click on Trees again.  I hope this helps.
Tom