Once the needles or fronds turn brown, they stay brown. Depending on the cause of the browning, an evergreen may be able to generate new growth from the tips, but sometimes the tree ends up looking like a tree made up of bottle brushes. Many arborvitae trees succumbed to the drought of 2012.
Needle dropping on the inside branches of evergreens is to be expected through autumn. Brown needles at the tips and of new growth indicate a dying tree. Evergreens naturally lose some needles to reduce winter snow and ice damage.
Roots rely on water stored in tree needles once the ground freezes. This can drain the tree's water stash quickly, causing the needles to turn brown from dryness. Solution: If the tree is just suffering from dehydration, a protective spray for evergreens is a quick and effective fix.
There are so many different reasons why your tree could be turning brown: diseases, a lack of nutrition in the soil, dehydration, or an infestation. Each of those problems could lead you to another problem that you have to fix before you can save the tree. In winter, the culprit is likely to be soil that is too cold.
Common factors include drought, high winds, and extreme temperatures. One of the top concerns for evergreen browning is water loss. While coniferous trees have adapted to retain moisture and nutrients in harsh conditions, there are times when the foliage doesn't receive enough water to keep up with its needs.
If you are not sure whether or not your tree has been overwatered, there are a few other signs to look for. For example, leaves that are yellow or wilted can be a sign of too much water. You should also check for any fungal growths around the base of the tree. These are often indicative of overwatering as well.
Short of regular fungicide and/or insecticide spraying, which is both difficult and expensive on mature trees, there's not a lot that can be done to save diseased evergreens. The best course of action is to keep your trees as healthy as possible with good cultural practices.
While it is possible to revive sick or dying trees, bringing dead trees back to life is typically not feasible. There are several reasons to remove a dead tree — but how exactly can one tell if a tree is dead, sick, or healthy?
Too Much Sunlight
Sometimes, there will be enough sunlight that your evergreen trees will dry out more quickly as well. If you've ever suffered a mild sunburn, then you know what it'll feel like when your evergreen tree suffers from sunscald. The needles and bark are both drying out.
You might be using incorrect tree health care practices, which could be what is causing the leaves on your tree to turn brown. Things like incorrect watering, unhealthy soil composition, and over-fertilization can cause a tree's leaves to turn brown.
And can a half-dead tree be saved? The short answer is YES. The slightly longer answer is that trees are never half-dead or half-alive or mostly dead or slightly alive. If a tree is not dead, it is alive and can thus be restored to its full glory.
'When fertilizing evergreens, it is best to use a product that is higher in nitrogen than phosphorous or potassium,' recommends Rachel. 'Evergreens respond more quickly to nitrogen-based fertilizer than they do other nutrients such as those provided by using eggs in the garden or using banana peels as fertilizer.
Because evergreens never go completely dormant, their roots will continue to draw water to counter drying winter winds. Don't expect your evergreens to go through a growth spurt right away, but if you give them what they need to thrive, most of these varieties should grow by at least a foot each year.
In many cases, the damage is minor and, with the exception of loss of some needles, trees recover. More severe damage can result in death of branch tips or entire branches. Often, the side of the tree that faces the prevailing winds, usually out of the west, is most susceptible to winter drying.
Prune all evergreens, except pine, before new growth starts in the spring or during the semidormant period in mid-summer. When pruning, follow the general branching pattern to maintain the natural shape. Remove dead, diseased, or broken branches anytime.
Fertilizers. Too much or too little fertilizer can be bad for your dying tree. Soils with organic fertilizers can help an area around a tree remain loose, giving the root system plenty of room to breathe. This will allow your tree to get the extra nourishment it needs.
In nature, a dead tree is a vital part of the ecosystem, so it can stand for as long as a day or two to one or more years before falling. Some trees in the wild continue to stand for decades, providing shade and shelter for wildlife and becoming a vital hub for insect activity.
Evergreens attract a few common pests and diseases. Most commonly, there's the pine beetle that attacks trees from the inside out, and the cytospora canker disease that leaves bulges on branches while seeping sap from the trunk.
The causes behind evergreen shrubs turning brown are generally when they face soil problems and heat stress. In addition, nutrient deficiency, unavailability of water, and some environmental factors can also cause discoloration. Shrubs become brown in the autumn season too, which is natural.
Give the tree 1 to 3 inches of water every week, unless moisture comes in the form of rainfall. Watering deeply once or twice weekly is better than more frequent, shallow irrigation, as deep watering will develop long, healthy roots. Shallow roots will be more prone to damage from drought.
Yellowing leaves can be a sign of root rot, and the leaves may drop off. The leaves may also become distorted (smaller than usual, twisted, etc.). Once you do inspect the roots, you may find that they are a different color than normal (darker, reddish-brown, etc.) and stink with rot.
Evergreen Tree Root Rot
The symptoms of root rot include wilted and discolored needles, blisters alongside the roots, and soft, weak wood beneath the bark. The only way to treat root rot is to dig away all the damp soil around the roots and let it dry.
Overwatered plants can sometimes recover on their own, but it depends on the plant and the extent of the overwatering. If the roots have rotted, the plant will likely not recover. However, if the overwatering has only caused the leaves to wilt, the plant may be able to bounce back.