Freeze Damage

Back in November I am sure you remember the rapid temperature change. To refresh your memory, click here for a link to the calendar view of the actual temperatures for our "neck of the woods" (You may have to scroll down)

We experienced a 78 degree swing within three days. At this point of the season, trees have not gone into dormancy to prepare for winter. With the warm fall ahead of these sub zero temperatures, trees were still "active". By this I mean, trees are still translocating water throughout the plant and the needles.

In a nutshell, while the plant is active it calls for water throughout. When the water freezes it starves parts of the tree and they can suffer from drought or desiccation.

If this were February and we were well into winter, there would be less concern because trees would be dormant.

It's still sort of a mystery to fully understand what happens in the plant and how much is actually affected. Since trees can't go inside during the cold or have a coat thrown on them, usually the outer portions of the tree suffer first.

We are beginning to see signs of desiccation on pines and spruce trees, not only on the golf course, but the neighborhood and after chatting with other local Superintendents and Tree Care companies, there are signs all over the Front Range.

Trees that are healthier have a greater chance of fighting through freeze stress. This is why proper pruning and long term maintenance of trees is critical to any tree population.

To what the extent of the damage is, will not be realized until spring or even summer. Some of the deciduous trees may be slow to bud out and start leaf growth  in the spring.

Pines may just have cosmetic damage but could stick around for a  year or two. The needles may have suffered damage and it may take their entire cycle to drop and for new needles to emerge.

It is still too early to tell how damaging that event truly was until the next growing season. It will be important to keep an eye on the progress the trees and monitor whether they are recovering or not.