Why should I be watering trees in fall?

Question: Why should I be watering trees in fall?

Answer: You should be watering trees properly in fall, for the same reasons given for watering shrubs. The winter damage that trees sustain often stems from their inability to draw water from the frozen earth. Watering trees properly in fall can minimize the damage. The following is the proper regimen for watering trees in fall:

• Stop watering trees, both evergreen and deciduous, throughout early autumn, until the time when the leaves of the deciduous trees fall. This will allow both evergreen and deciduous trees to enter a transitional phase, not unlike the "hardening off" undergone by nursery plants in spring. What you're trying to avoid here is causing spurts of new growth that won't be winter-hardy.
  
  
• In late autumn, after the deciduous trees have dropped their leaves, give both evergreen and deciduous trees (and shrubs) a deep watering. This should be done before the ground freezes. Following this regimen for watering trees is especially important for the evergreen trees, which, although their growth slows down, do not enjoy the period of dormancy that helps protect deciduous trees.
  
  
• It even helps to water evergreen trees during "January thaw" and other warm periods that pop up unexpectedly in winter.

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