Trees that sat out over winter

[Mitch]

I had 12 or so bur acorn trees and a few chestnut trees that are a year old. I let them sit outside over winter. Watered them occasionally but mostly Mother Nature did the watering. I'm in north Texas and most everything around has budded out except my trees. I thought for sure by now they would have snapped out of dormancy.

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[OkieKubota]

Do a fingernail test on them...none of our oaks have budded yet...

 

[Mitch]

Fingernail test?
I'm guessing scrape with fingernail to see if green?


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[dogdoc]

Fingernail test?
I'm guessing scrape with fingernail to see if green?


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Yep. All hardwoods are still dormant for me. My apples are still dormant but pears and plums are flowered out

 

[Fish]

Likely they are still asleep.

 

[THE LLC]

Yep fingernail test. I have, however, in really cold winters have pots freeze and kill my trees. Hasn't been an issue the past two years.

 

[TreeDaddy]

fingernail probably best

I bend branches.... if they snap and are brown,dead...... if pliable and bend;alive

bill

 

[mattpatt]

My vote is they're still dormant. Things are just starting to come alive for me here in North East Texas. I find it's really hard to kill trees during the winter. I left some in some rootmaker 18s one year that I thought would surely be goners and most all budded out the next year. These were left on the grow table with no protection whatsoever.


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[momark]

Bur oaks are one of the last oaks to leaf out here in Missouri.

 

[Mitch]

I'll be patient and see what happens but my luck they are all dead


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[Mitch]

With it being almost 90 here this entire week, surely the end of dormancy is now?
Should I have not left them out all winter?

 

[dogdoc]

Mitch,j I have about a dozen burs and schuette oaks I over wintered in pots in my backyard. Went and checked on them today and they are still in full dormancy.

 

[Mitch]

Let me ask this.....I can snap off some limbs pretty easily. It appears on some of the same trees the trunk area has some green on it yet. Should I clip those trees down to where the tree appears to be green?


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[Fish]

I would wait to clip. If they are dead above a certain point you will soon know for sure and can clip then. Buds should be swelling though.

 

[mattpatt]

Burs are just starting to pop here.


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[CAS_HNTR]

I agree with above....wait and see. Oaks are sometimes painfully slow to wake up.

 

[Mitch]

It's actually the chestnut trees that look green at the bottom 1-3 inches and the rest appears dead


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[Charlieyca]

Im in NC zone 7B and sawtooths are the only oaks I have seen leaf out despite our warm spring. Both mature and seedling oaks in my area are still dormant, but with some bud swell.

 

[mattpatt]

I'm in NE Texas and the oaks are just starting to leaf out here. As far as chestnuts go I've found that if the wood looks brown and brittle usually it's dead. They will however tend to sprout back from below the dead part and take on a more bush like appearance. In this case I let them regrow then trim the dead limbs off once I know where the good wood is.


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[Mitch]

Still got nothin on mine. I'm guessing I didn't water them enough over the winter? That's the only thing I can guess.


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