Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show: Avoid pruning trees in drought
While listeners in Wisconsin are faring far better this Summer of Drought, Minnesota is in tough shape. Only far southeastern Minnesota is okay. Most of the rest of the state is in severe to extreme drought. A map from Aug. 19, 2021
You’ve likely seen your stress on your trees and shrubs. My hydrangeas are unhappy, leaves have started to drop on trees too early. Other signs include leaf curling, wilting and discoloration. Some will produce extra seeds.
The University of Minnesota Extension has put out a warning to homeowners not to prune any trees until the drought is over. That means we currently need 5 to 8 inches of rain in 4 weeks to end it. That looks unlikely. Click on this LINK for information on Watering Wisely.
A rule of thumb is to water them slowly and deeply about 10 gallons of water for each inch of the “established” tree’s diameter about every 7 days. Likely that hasn’t been happening. I know I haven’t.
I HAVE watered my trees and shrubs planted less than 3 years ago.
When trees are stressed during a drought, they are more susceptible to disease and insects. Pruning can increase that risk further. You can prune out dead branches but that’s it. Trees can sometimes lose all their leaves to drought and recover; sometimes not.
If a tree is severely stressed and drops all of its leaves, it may be unable to produce enough photosynthates to properly harden off and survive the up-coming winter. Leaf drop is how the tree is trying to help itself, they’re shedding the part that needs water.
The photo below was taken in September of 2019 but there is a drastic difference in flower color. They are NOT going to look like the below photo.
