Ask Ellen: Did the weather hurt my spruce trees?

Ellen Bacca
·1 min read

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — If you have a spruce tree in your yard, you may have noticed some new growth broken off and littering the ground.

Viewers would like to know if the recent warmth is the cause behind the branch loss. According to expert Rick Vuyst, while the weather is partially to blame, the true culprit is squirrels!

Rick Vuyst, host of Gardening Simplified, said he usually receives several messages during the late winter from panicked people seeing shedding spruce. He said while it looks concerning, it’s nothing to worry about.

Spruce trees (Courtesy Rick Vuyst).
Spruce trees (Courtesy Rick Vuyst).
Spruce branches (Courtesy Rick Vuyst).
Spruce branches (Courtesy Rick Vuyst).

According to Vuyst, growth on spruce trees takes the form of new branches with a small bud. Hungry squirrels love to eat those buds. Often in late winter and early spring, squirrels are running low on food sources. The buds become a frequent target of the animals. To eat the buds, squirrels will climb to the ends of the new branches and snip them off with their teeth. After the branch end falls to the ground, squirrels will race to snack on the buds leaving the rest of the branch littered on the ground.

Spruce trees won’t feel a major impact from these trimmings, according to Vuyst. Other plants with large buds are also susceptible to being snacked on by squirrels this time of year. As the weather continues to warm, squirrels will move on from the spruce and find other sources of food, minimizing their impact.

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