Plant Health Alert – Tree Health Post Helene
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Collapse ▲Trees Failing Post-Helene
We have been seeing lots of plants dying Spring 2025. I have also had reports of trees falling over that survived the storm. I have consulted with several local arborists and we think many of the tree issues we are seeing may be lingering effects from Hurricane Helene. There is also a new disease called ‘Pink Disease’ that is affecting trees and shrubs. Wwill this new disease spread as a result of storm damage?
Lingering Effects The trees locally got thrashed for hours being twisted in the wind. Surely they were damaged even if they did not fall over. Wood delaminates under stress and roots can break. The trees that survived Hurricane Helene may be more likely to blow over during relatively mild winds. If we consider the thrashing trees experienced in the storm it is likely we will see many more trees and tree branches dying this spring from having been broken by the severe wind.
Conifers Arborvitaes were experiencing problems even before the storm. So much so that I wrote an article about it. Since the storm arborvitaes, Leyland cypress and other conifers have been dying. Leyland cypresses are dying at an alarming rate as well. Arborvitae are having problems.
Arborvitaes have been dying for years. The storm may have exacerbated the issue.
Ambrosia Beetles The undertakers of the plant world are ambrosia beetles. These tiny wood-boring beetles can smell injured and physiologically stressed trees from miles away. They find these weakened trees and drill into them to lay eggs. The females carry a fungus on their body which clogs the xylem of the tree which finally kills it. We will likely see increased ambrosia beetle damaged trees in the coming years due to damage caused by the hurricane.
Ambrosia killed maple spring 2025. Photo by Steven Carrol, Schneider Shrub and Tree.
Leyland cypress are dying post Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Damaged Trees Our trees are not the first to be damaged by hurricanes. Florida experienced many storms in the 2000’s. One of our great arboricultural professors Dr. Ed Gillman from the University of Florida created a website with information about hurricane damaged trees.