Did the Hurricane Kill My Pine Trees?
Short answer, probably.
But the real question is, how can you be sure, and what do you do next?
This year, many pine trees are looking bad.
They look dead, or sick.
In southwest Florida, the pine trees are usually slash pine, Pinus elliottii, but sometimes long leaf pine, Pinus palustris. And they are located on all types of properties – at public parks, and on private property.
As a land manager, I am concerned about the cause of death, and what I should do – if anything – to prevent the problem from spreading or getting worse.
For example, Conservation Foundation owns about 230 acres in Lee County, on Pine Island in Saint James City. Here, most of our pine trees survived Hurricane Ian. The ones that didn’t survive – well, it’s fairly obvious that the wind killed them when we see they’re snapped in half or lying on their side. But what’s less obvious is the cause of death for trees that are dead, but still standing upright. Did they die before the storm, or after? When? What killed them?
Frankly, I was so pre-occupied with clearing debris after Hurricane Ian that I didn’t pay attention to the trees that were still standing.
On our property, I’m pretty sure that the hurricane winds killed several trees by shaking them, which causes the internal vascular tissue to break and separate. I’ve heard this called “shake,” and when the tree gets stressed from shake, “non-epidemic” bark beetles show up and finish the job. The process is prolonged – months, as far as I know.
However, I wanted to check whether salt is hurting our trees. The reason is that our property was flooded by about three feet of saltwater, and we know that pines don’t particularly like salt water. So, we took soil samples and brought them to the local Agricultural Extension Office. For about $20, they ran some tests and told us, no, your soil is not salty. Thank goodness!
So, no, salt is not killing our trees. We also found that the soil is fine overall – particularly that the pH is acceptable for pine trees. That was also a relief.
My next step was to invite the county forester from the Florida Forest service to our property for a little walk-about and education. The fact is, I’m not an expert on pine tree management, and they are.
During the visit, they reassured me that in south Florida, we don’t have to worry about bark beetles.
You might have seen pine bark beetle infestations wipe out whole forests up north. Well, we don’t have “epidemic” beetle outbreaks in our region – they don’t come south of Orlando. In our area, we have “non-epidemic” bark beetles, which attack a tree after they are sick or injured. So, the beetle isn’t the problem.
They also gave me advice on whether to remove any of the dead trees. They asked what our goals are (wildlife management) and then advised against removal, since the removal equipment is heavy and can crack the roots of healthy pines, which can kill them. Finally, they gave me some pointers on prescribed fire, including the advice to avoid burns while pines are “candelling,” or actively growing.
If you are worried about pines on your property, I have a few suggestions to help.
- Check your soil nutrients, pH and salinity. Don’t just assume that a storm is your only problem. Sometimes it’s not.
- Invite the county forester to your property, and ask for their advice.
Manatee, Sarasota, Hardee, DeSoto, Charlotte Counties:
Richard Andrew Larsen III
Office (941)-213-6978
Cell (941)-405-9025
Lee & Collier Counties:
Clark Ryals
Phone: (239) 690-8033
3. Check out the Florida Forest Service website for other resources:
4. Learn a little about pine bark beetles and common diseases and issues. Two helpful factsheets are attached.
5. Every year, before hurricane season, take pictures of the pines on your property. You should be taking pictures of your house for insurance claims, so take pictures of the trees, too. Pictures can be a handy reference when trying to remember if a tree died before or after a storm.
6. If you’re able, leave dead trees alone. I know the tendency is to remove dead trees, but the fact is, dead trees are more valuable to wildlife than living trees, and a gnarly, old, heart pine, standing in a field or in the woods, looks really cool. Let the bark rot down and the heart wood weather. It will be there for decades and will give your property a unique Florida charm. A little information about dead trees (called snags) is also attached.
As a Floridian, I love my pines, and I love the wildlife that visit them.
I hope this information is helpful to you and your pine trees. May you enjoy them!
