Young red pine trees bent over and flattened by the weight of ice and snow. They will not recover. / Photo Credit: Levi Koski

By Linda Williams, DNR Forest Health Specialist, Woodruff
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov, 920-360-0665
and Sam Blake, DNR Forester, Crandon
Samuel.Blake@wisconsin.gov, 715-216-6396

On Saturday, March 29, and continuing throughout the day on Sunday, March 30, northeastern Wisconsin experienced freezing rain, causing ice accumulations of one-quarter to one-half inch.

The freezing rain weighed down branches of trees. Then, to add to the weight of the ice on the trees, the freezing rain changed to wet, heavy snow with accumulations of up to 7 inches. The combination of ice and wet, heavy snow caused branches to break. In some cases, entire trees broke off.

Pine plantations seemed to be hardest hit, with the tops of some trees becoming so weighed down that trees leaned over and stems snapped.

A storm damage page, originally created for the July 2019 derecho storm, offers useful information for forest landowners who must decide what they should do about damage from the recent ice storm. The page contains information on what to do first, pests, wildfire concerns and finding help.

In areas of severe damage, where a significant number of trees are broken and down, landowners could consider a salvage harvest. If no salvage takes place, some insect or disease issues might emerge over the next 1-3 years, including pine bark beetles, Armillaria root disease and wood-staining fungi.

If the damage is scattered, no salvage is necessary, and the broken limbs and tops can remain where they fell. Check out the links above for more info, or reach out to your local DNR forester or tax law forester if you have specific questions about your property.