by Jewel Pickert

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Most people think winter is the hardest on trees. However, spring is actually more hectic than winter, according to Gary Johnson, Assistant Extension Specialist of Urban & Community Forestry.It all has to do with plant physiology, which is dependent on the temperature.Trees are winter hardy down to -30° F. This is considered their rest period.If we experience a temporary thaw in January, the trees can still revert to their previous winter hardiness.However, if there’s a thaw in late March or April and then very cold temperatures after that, at that point, trees can’t go backward to being winter hardy so easily. The result is branch die-back, even if the temps were 20-30° F before.When people start tapping for maple syrup, the trees are out of their rest period.There was a lot of tree branch die-back in the spring of 2020.