Forest Health News

Thanksgiving Blizzard And Tree Damage

Ice and snow weigh down trees in a forest after a 2025 blizzard.

Trees bent from the weight of heavy snow following a Thanksgiving-week blizzard in northern Wisconsin. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Paul Cigan, DNR Forest Health Specialist
Paul.Cigan@wisconsin.gov or 715-416-4920

This year’s Thanksgiving holiday brought with it not only a hearty meal and a few good hunting stories to tell around the family table, but also a heavy fixing of blizzard-like conditions. The storm caused a real stretch to the proverbial beltline of many trees that were left heavily bent over in its wake.

On the evening of Tuesday, Nov. 25, a potent winter storm moved across northwestern Wisconsin, bringing with it freezing rain that transitioned to heavy, wet snow as temperatures dipped overnight.

Then, on Nov. 28-29, southern Wisconsin experienced its own potent dose of early winter snow when a second large snowstorm moved through, bringing heavy snowfall but with more limited damage.

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Heterobasidion Root Disease Resources Updated

Heterobasidion root disease fruiting bodies grow on base of tree

A tree shows fruiting bodies of Heterobasidion root disease at the base of its trunk. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Kyoko Scanlon, DNR Forest Pathologist
Kyoko.Scanlon@wisconsin.gov or 608-235-7532

In 2025, Heterobasidion root disease (HRD), a destructive fungal disease, continued to be found in Wisconsin counties where the disease had previously been detected. There were no new county finds in 2025.

Based on the findings in 2025, the maps in the HRD stump treatment guidelines and online viewer have been updated. The 6-mile and 25-mile buffer zone maps in the guidelines are updated annually and good through Dec. 31, 2026.

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Make Plans For National Invasives Week

Workers spray water from a hose to clean the wheels of a tractor in a woodlot.

Workers follow the practice of pressure-washing the tires and frames of a tractor to rid the vehicle of possible invasive plants after a workday in the forest. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Outreach and Communications
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

The North American Invasives Species Management Association (NAISMA) has organized a series of activities to take place as part of its National Invasive Species Awareness Week (NISAW), set for Feb. 23 through 27.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will participate by presenting a news release and daily social media posts in the days leading up to the start of NISAW’s 2026 activities.

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Correction On Plans For Discarding Holiday Decorations

A pile of discarded Christmas trees in a drop-off lot.

A stack of discarded Christmas trees awaits processing at a drop-off facility. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Wisconsin DNR

An article in the January edition of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ Forest Health News contained some incorrect information on the disposal of wreaths, trees, boughs and other holiday decorations.

The article focused on disposing holiday plant matter in ways that avoided the spread of invasive insects, seeds and spores that can spread to harm trees, plants and habitats.

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Phomopsis, Black Knot Easily Found In Winter

Phomopsis galls are found on branches of a northern red oak.

This northern red oak has many large Phomopsis galls. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Linda Williams, DNR Forest Health Specialist
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov or 920-360-0665

Winter is a great time to admire the structure of trees. When they are without leaves, you can see how the branches are arranged, how large or small the branches are, and if they are fairly straight or contorted. You might also notice some swellings or growths on those branches.

Two types that can really make a statement are Phomopsis and black knot.

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Time To Consider A WMA-PFGP Grant Application

Volunteers working to remove invasive plants from a riverside forested area.

Volunteers at a garlic mustard-pulling event on the Montreal River in Iron County, part of a control project planned by a previous WMA-PFGP recipient. / Photo Credit: Ramona Shackleford, Northwoods Cooperative Weed Management Area

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Outreach and Communications
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

With an April 1 deadline on the horizon, it’s time for eligible Weed Management Groups (WMGs) to consider applying for a Weed Management Area-Private Forest Grant Program (WMA-PFGP) grant to address invasive forest plants in 2026.

The WMA-PFGP helps eligible groups both by dealing directly with the invasives and by providing education, information and outreach to others. The grants are meant as reimbursements that cover up to 75% of eligible costs, with a 25% match required.

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Forest Health Specialists Spread The News

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Outreach and Communications
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

A DNR group in a forest discusses forest health issues .

Wisconsin DNR Forest Health specialist Bill McNee presents a hazard tree training talk to other DNR workers at Lizard Mound State Park in 2023. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

Did any of your trees explode during the recent cold snap? Likely not.

Social media — and some traditional news outlets — grabbed hits and headlines by warning folks that the January cold snap could spark a phenomenon they called “exploding trees.”

But Bill McNee, an Oshkosh-based Forest Health specialist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR), was there to prune the branches of the fast-growing viral story.

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Forest Health Annual Report Hot Off The Presses

The cover of the 2025 Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Forest Health Annual Report.

The cover of the 2025 Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Forest Health Annual Report. / Graphic Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Art Kabelowsky, DNR Outreach and Communications, Fitchburg
Arthur.Kabelowsky@wisconsin.gov or 608-335-0167

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has made its 2025 Forest Health Annual Report ready to view and download.

This year’s edition contains 55 pages of reporting on forest health issues throughout Wisconsin, detailing methods employed by the DNR and other agencies to control pests, diseases and invasive plants.

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Hemlock Borer Attacks Stressed Hemlock

Closeup photo of a hemlock borer larva feeding inside channels in a hemlock tree.

A hemlock borer larva inside channels in a hemlock tree. / Photo Credit: Steven Katovich, Bugwood.org

By Linda Williams, DNR Forest Health Specialist, Woodruff
Linda.Williams@wisconsin.gov or 920-360-0665

Woodpeckers are often the first to know that a hemlock tree is being attacked by hemlock borer.

Woodpeckers will flake off the outer layers of bark to get at the tasty hemlock borer larvae under the bark, leaving the tree with a reddish hue that, once you’ve seen it, is unmistakable. The woodpecker damage quickly makes it obvious that the tree was fully infested from top to bottom by hemlock borer.

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Be Mindful Of Invasives During Holiday Clean-Up

A stack of discarded Christmas trees awaits processing at a drop-off facility.

A stack of discarded Christmas trees awaits processing at a drop-off facility. / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR

By Wisconsin DNR

Invasive plants and insects don’t mind playing the long game. After all, they’re just trying to survive and thrive, like the rest of us.

They’ll hang out as part of your holiday decorations throughout the season, just on the chance humans might dispose of them improperly, giving them an opportunity to find a new home in your yard or neighborhood.

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