How To Confirm The Tree Is Dead Or Alive In Your Lawn?

Trees are an essential part of your lawn. It adds greenery to the space and makes your lawn look lush. However, once the winter hits, trees tend to shed their leaves. This is done to save the tree from the scathing winters. Once the shrouds of long and cold winter lift finally, the trees start to grow back their leaves. Thus, announce the arrival of the blooming spring season. However, sometimes this process takes time. The time when the tree sheds its leaves and goes into survival mode is called a dormant state. But sometimes it gets people confused if the dormant stage doesn’t end soon after the end of the winter season. People tend to wonder whether the tree is dead or alive. To help ease your worry, we are here to impart knowledge that will allow you to check if the tree is dead or alive during or after the dormant stage. This is an important knowledge of lawn maintenance that you must have:
 
How to Test It Out: Whether the Tree Is Dead or Alive?
 
Check For Buds:
 
One of the signs of life that you can look for in a dormant tree to ascertain if the tree is dead or alive is to check for buds in the tree. Buds grow on the crown of the tree even when the tree is in its dormant stages. The buds typically grow in green, brown, or red colours. If there is no sign of buds popping up, be it in the crown or stems, even after winter is over, it is one clue that the tree might not be alive. As part of lawn maintenance, it will help you check if the tree is alive or dead.
 
Observe The Bark:
 
Observe the bark of the tree; the bark also offers you important clues that help you check for signs of life. Just like the leaves, the bark of a tree sheds and regenerates as well. However, when the tree is dying, it is quite difficult and time-consuming for the tree to do it. If you observe a tree in your lawn having the same problem, then it is a telltale sign that the tree is perhaps dying, and no amount of maintenance can save it. 
 
Check The Cambium:
 
Cambium is a green layer underneath the bark of the tree. Even during the dormant stage, the cambium remains green in colour. However, once the tree is dead, there will not be any sign of a green cambium layer. Snap a little branch from the tree in question. Upon snapping, use a knife to carefully make an incision and remove the topmost layer—the bark. Upon removing it, you can check if the cambium is green or not. This is an easy step in your lawn maintenance that can help you ascertain if the tree is dead or alive.
 
Check The Roots:
 
Life in the tree flows from the root. When there is a problem in the soil or root, it can cause the tree to die. Ensure the tree is not getting ready to die because of roots or soil problems. As part of your lawn maintenance, you must do this to ensure the trees in your lawn are not dying. Remove the soil to expose the root of the tree a little. If the root appears damaged or has signs of fungus growing, it can indicate that the tree is dying. However, if you see mushrooms forming on the trunk of the tree, then it is a sign that the trunk is decaying from within.
 
These are some of the many ways for you to test out if the tree is dying or dead. Apart from these, you can also look for signs of decay, such as cracks or split trunks, cavities in the trunk, and many more, to ensure the tree is dead. Knowing the status of the tree is very important for your lawn maintenance. Once you are sure the tree is dead, you need to remove the tree from the lawn to ensure the safety and aesthetic beauty of the lawn.