Evergreens present construction, privateness, and coloration lengthy after deciduous crops have dropped their leaves, however they are often susceptible to winter stress.
Not like deciduous crops, evergreen foliage continues to lose moisture all through the chilly months. When soil is frozen, roots can’t exchange that water.
Mixed with chilly temperatures, drying winds, heavy snow, freeze–thaw cycles, and deicing salt, winter circumstances can depart shrubs browned, scorched, or structurally broken by spring.
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Winter harm usually seems as bronzed or dried foliage, crisp leaf margins, cut up bark, bent or splayed branches, or sections that fail to leaf out when temperatures rise in spring.
Some injury is beauty. Extra extreme stress can weaken shrubs and enhance susceptibility to pests and illness in the course of the rising season.
Understanding what prompted the injury helps you determine easy methods to reply and easy methods to forestall it subsequent time.
Right here’s what I’ll cowl:
Managing Winter Harm in Evergreen Shrubs
Since winters are typically harsh and chaotic – particularly right here within the Midwest – don’t be stunned in case your evergreens expertise greater than one of many following sorts of injury concurrently.
Chilly Temperature Damage
Chilly harm happens when temperatures drop beneath what a specific evergreen can tolerate.
Shrubs grown outdoors their really useful hardiness vary are particularly susceptible.
A standard boxwood, as an example, received’t fare effectively for those who place it in USDA Hardiness Zone 3.
When plant tissues freeze, the water inside cells expands, rupturing cell partitions.
Floral and vegetative buds are sometimes extra vulnerable than mature foliage, which is why new progress could undergo first.
Harm usually seems as blackened, wilted, or watersoaked tissue.
New shoots could flip limp and discolored, and evergreen branches usually present bronzing or reddish-brown foliage every week or two after publicity.
Extreme harm could cause dieback of total stems.
Belowground roots aren’t resistant to chilly harm, both.
Though soil cools extra slowly than air, roots are typically much less cold-hardy than aboveground progress.
Shallow root programs, lack of mulch, and sudden excessive chilly can result in root harm or loss of life.
Generally, it’s not even the precise diploma of the coolness that issues, however moderately, the timing.
Gradual temperature declines in fall permit evergreens to acclimate to winter circumstances.
Sudden early freezes can injury shrubs earlier than they’ve had an opportunity to acclimate, whereas late spring frosts could injure crops which have already resumed energetic progress.
Repeated freeze-thaw cycles throughout winter additional stress plant tissues.
In terms of managing chilly temperature harm, an oz. of prevention is price a pound of remedy.
Choose evergreen shrubs which are suitably hardy in your area and transplant them both earlier than bud break in early spring or previous to the onset of chilly temperatures in late summer time or fall.
Apply three to 4 inches of mulch over the foundation zone to average soil temperatures and preserve moisture.
In case your shrubs are solely marginally hardy in your space, be aware of the microclimates fashioned in your backyard.
Circumstances resembling heavy shade, harsh winds, and low elevations can decrease the temperature past what a hardiness zone map signifies, and should put your specimens in danger.
Alternatively, using protected areas resembling courtyards or planting close to partitions may help protect your shrubs from harsh exposures.
Keep away from late-season fertilization, which inspires tender new progress, and delay spring pruning till after the chance of exhausting frost has handed.
However suppose all that prep doesn’t go in keeping with plan and your plantings are in jeopardy. Now what?
Container crops will be moved indoors or right into a greenhouse when temperatures drop, whereas in-ground plantings will be coated with frost material or thermal plant blankets.
In case you suspect harm, wait till spring progress resumes earlier than assessing injury.
Gently scrape the bark of affected branches, inexperienced tissue beneath signifies dwelling wooden, whereas brown tissue suggests dieback.
In spring, prune useless branches again to the primary wholesome bud or lateral department utilizing clear instruments. In lots of instances, shrubs will progressively fill in over one to 2 rising seasons.
If a complete plant fails to indicate indicators of life by late spring, substitute could also be the best choice.
Replant with a species or cultivar higher suited to your hardiness zone or place the brand new specimen in a extra protected microclimate.
Winter Burn
Winter burn is a type of desiccation harm brought on by moisture loss throughout winter.
Daylight and wind strip away the plant’s moisture, whereas frozen soil hinders the uptake of water by the roots.
Poorly-developed, shallow root programs and low temperatures – particularly following a heat and sunny day – can additional exacerbate moisture issues.
Signs usually seem as browning, bronzing, or bleaching. In conifers, discoloration normally begins on the ideas of needles or scales.
Broadleaf evergreens usually present injury first alongside leaf margins.
Broadleaf species are typically extra vulnerable than conifers. Their bigger leaves lose moisture extra readily and present harm extra visibly.
A holly leaf, for instance, is a a lot bigger goal for wind and daylight than a slender pine needle.
As injury progresses, foliage could dry out and drop. In extreme instances, total branches could die again.
Though most shrubs get well with time, repeated or excessive winter burn can weaken crops and scale back general vigor.
Wait till spring progress begins earlier than eradicating broken tissue. As soon as new progress seems, prune useless stems and branches again to wholesome wooden.
Use sanitized instruments, and depend on a visible inspection or a bark scrape take a look at to find out whether or not tissue is alive.
Some winter burn threat components are out of our arms, resembling a heat autumn delaying the onset of dormancy. However many types of winter burn prevention are effectively inside our management.
Website choice performs a serious position in stopping winter burn. Select hardy species suited to your local weather and plant them in areas shielded from prevailing winds and intense winter solar.
Keep constant soil moisture via fall till the bottom freezes. A 3- to four-inch layer of mulch helps insulate roots and scale back moisture loss.
Keep away from late-season fertilization or untimely pruning, each of which may stimulate tender progress susceptible to dehydration.
In uncovered areas, momentary windbreaks made from burlap or canvas can scale back moisture loss. Place screens on the aspect dealing with prevailing winter winds and safe them firmly with stakes.
Just like these with chilly temperature harm, any shrubs winter burned past restore needs to be eliminated after you’ve taken the time to provide any nonetheless hanging on an opportunity to bounce again.
Exchange them with more durable plantings, for those who so need, or select future planting areas which are extra protected.
Snow and Ice Breakage
Heavy snow and ice can place important weight on evergreen branches.
As accumulation will increase, stems could bend, cut up, or break below stress. Even when branches don’t snap, extended bending can distort the plant’s pure form and weaken its construction.
Ice is tough to take away safely whereas temperatures stay beneath freezing, however recent snowfall will be gently dismissed earlier than it compacts.
Use an upward sweeping movement with a brush or light-weight snow shovel to raise snow away from branches moderately than pushing down, which may trigger breakage.
Throughout prolonged snowfall, snow could have to be cleared periodically to forestall extreme buildup.
For taller shrubs, use a long-handled broom or light-weight software to achieve higher branches.
As at all times, don’t climb ladders to carry out yard work in unsafe circumstances.
Correct structural pruning throughout spring or summer time can scale back the chance of winter breakage.
Take away weak, crowded, or poorly connected branches so the shrub is best in a position to stand up to heavy precipitation.
In areas vulnerable to important snowfall, loosely tying upright evergreens with mushy twine earlier than winter may help forestall splaying.
After winter, prune damaged or hanging branches again to wholesome wooden. Clear cuts promote correct therapeutic and scale back the chance of illness.
If structural injury is in depth, it’s possible you’ll must seek the advice of a licensed arborist.
Herbivore Feeding Harm
Winter is commonly a lean time for a lot of plant-munching mammals.
As soon as their most popular crops turn out to be scarce, herbivores resembling deer and rabbits can flip to your evergreen shrubs for sustenance.
Repeated winter searching can distort a shrub’s pure type. Heavy feeding that removes terminal buds or giant sections of foliage could completely alter its form.
Bodily obstacles are probably the most dependable type of safety.
A line of deer fencing round your property and particular person rabbit fencing round specimens you wish to shield can present the last word one-two punch of safety.
Liquid repellents may additionally assist deter feeding. Apply to dry foliage when temperatures are above freezing, and reapply in keeping with label directions, particularly after heavy precipitation.
Liquid Fence sells gallon-sized containers of liquid deer and rabbit repellent which are accessible on Amazon.
Liquid Fence Animal Repellent
Wait till mid- to late spring to evaluate the complete extent of harm. If browsed stems fail to provide new progress, prune them again to the primary wholesome, dwelling node.
Most established shrubs will get well over time, although repeated winter searching could require further safety in future seasons.
Salt Damage
Deicing salts utilized to sidewalks, driveways, and roadways can injure close by evergreen shrubs.
When sodium chloride accumulates within the soil, it interferes with water uptake and disrupts the steadiness of important vitamins.
Excessive salt concentrations can injury roots immediately, resulting in spring and summer time signs resembling leaf browning, tip burn, stunted progress, and dieback.
Salt spray presents an extra threat. When slush or runoff contacts foliage, it might burn needles, leaves, twigs, and younger stems.
Apply deicing merchandise sparingly and take care to restrict the place they land. Direct runoff away from planting beds when doable.
As a substitute of utilizing customary sodium chloride, you might enhance traction with coarse sand or de-icing merchandise which are safer for crops, resembling calcium chloride or calcium magnesium acetate.
Bodily obstacles may additionally assist shield shrubs rising close to streets or closely handled surfaces.
Burlap screens, plywood panels, or related supplies can protect foliage from salt spray throughout winter.
If salt publicity is suspected, deep watering in early spring may help leach gathered salts from the foundation zone. Guarantee soil drains effectively so flushed salts don’t linger.
Prune broken stems as soon as new progress begins and the extent of harm is evident.
In case you’re searching for much less salt-susceptible plantings, try our roundup of salt-tolerant evergreen shrubs!
Improper Vacation Lighting
Granted, that is the least regarding menace on the checklist.
Vacation lighting could cause minor however preventable injury to evergreen shrubs.
Lights meant for indoor use could generate extra warmth or lack correct insulation in opposition to moisture.
When wrapped round dwelling branches, they will scorch foliage or injury bark. Electrical faults, resembling frayed wires or unfastened connections, additionally enhance the chance of fireplace.
All the time use lighting rated for outside use, together with extension cords and energy sources designed to face up to winter circumstances.
When putting in lights, keep away from wrapping them tightly round branches.
Constricting stems can intrude with progress and trigger abrasion injury. Light-weight strands are greatest, significantly on younger shrubs with versatile or delicate progress.
After the final spring frost, prune any branches that present indicators of scorch, dieback, or mechanical harm.
Winter Is Coming…
Whether or not winter is simply across the nook or a number of seasons away, it pays to “be ready,” because the Boy Scouts are fond of claiming.
With the information supplied right here, you’ll be able to assist your evergreen shrubs to make it via the hardest season of the 12 months, sans harm.
Winter harm, that’s. A power majeure resembling a lightning strike or shrub-shearing sleepwalk might nonetheless happen, I suppose…
Have remarks or inquiries to share? The feedback part awaits.
To guard different crops within the backyard from the damages of wintry climate, you’re positive to seek out these guides fairly insightful:
© Ask the Specialists, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for extra particulars. Initially printed February 10, 2023. Final up to date February 19, 2026. Product picture by way of Liquid Fence. Uncredited images: Shutterstock.
