Spring will tell the fate of drought-stressed trees.
Within the next few weeks, it will become clear which trees will survive last summer’s drought.
“The trees struggled through the drought, but this was a good winter.” And all the rain and cold damp weather in March — even better, Hillman said.
They thrive when trees are weakened and can’t fight them off.
“In a drought, people think the tree is dying of thirst,” Hillman said.
In late March and early April, drought-stressed trees on Tucker Road in Dartmouth were blamed for two power outages days apart, according to Eversource.
Jim McBratney, president of Sylvan Nursery, 1028 Horseneck Road, Westport, said customers have called, asking for advice on their trees.
“A lot of mistakes made last year will rear their head this year.
They lost some of their oomph.” While fall is the best time to plant trees, early spring is not bad either, providing the tree gets enough water through the dry part of the summer.
“Really, the important part is to figure out a good way to water without letting the water run off,” Hillman said.