Should I water my trees in the winter?

The answer to this frequently asked question, as with most questions pertaining to arboriculture, begins with the phrase “It depends…”  

The short answer would be “If they need it.”  Then a follow up question, of course, is “How do I know if they need it?”.

Some guidelines:

If you live in an area where the ground does not freeze and you have not had any precipitation, then your trees may very well need a drink or two in the winter.  

If you are in an area where the ground does not freeze and you are getting regular moisture, then you probably do not need to water your trees.

If you are in an area where the soil DOES freeze and you are not getting any precipitation...well, if the ground is frozen it will do no good to create an ice rink around your tree.

If you are in an area where the soil freezes and you have snow on the ground, you don’t need to water.

If you are in an area where the soil freezes but you have periodic thaws, if you have snow on the ground you do not need to water…the melting snow will take care of it. 

If you are in an area where the soil freezes and you have periodic thaws but no snow on the ground then check the melted soil….is it muddy?  You don’t need to water.  Is it dry?  You do need to water.

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