Snow, Ice and Voles

Snow

Snow and ice can cause severe damage to not only junipers but also to arborvitaes and many other trees and shrubs. The sheer weight of the snow or ice may exceed the breaking point of the limbs. The breakage can cause large gaps in the plant – often ruining the appearance of the plant. If the snow or ice is followed by a severe temperature drop and gusty winds, the damage is often more severe because the wood is more brittle and the wind causes additional breakage.

Control

Carefully remove the snow as it is snowing, before branches begin to break. Keep in mind that wet snow is heavier than dry snow and thus, is more likely to damage trees. Remove the snow carefully during cold temperatures to avoid breaking limbs with the broom or what ever is being used to remove the snow. As for the ice, it is very difficult to remove without damaging the plant so it is probably best to let nature take its course.

Stem Bending

Sometimes the snow or ice does not cause any breakage. Instead the weight bends the stems over. Multi-stem plants seem to be more prone to this damage than single stem plants. If the bending over occurs at the wrong time or lasts too long, permanent internal structural damage is done to the trees’ wood. When this happens, the tree does not return to an upright position by itself.

Control

See above. In addition, the multiple stems may need to be tied with something that will not cut into the bark or cause girdling. Instead of tying individual branches, encircle all the stems in one loop. Old panty hose make very good tying material since they are made of nylon and take forever to decay. The pantyhose does not cut into the bark easily nor does it cause girdling if used in one large loop.

Voles

Voles can cause serious damage and even death of woody plants. Voles are sometimes confused with field mice. Voles have short tails while mice have a relatively long tail. Otherwise the coloring and size are similar. Vole damage usually occurs during the winter. It often occurs in landscape where there is a "natural or wild" area that touches the property line. Vole damage also occurs in landscapes that have naturalized areas or large groupings of ornamental grasses. Which give the voles a suitable habitat that allows them to breed and reduces predation on the voles. Voles eat the bark and cambium off of many plants during the winter when more suitable food supplies are limited. If the vole girdles the branch or trunk, the plant dies. Snow of three or more inches on the ground allows the vole to tunnel under the snow from his normal habitat to the junipers, arborvitae or other plants to feed on the bark and cambium.

Control

Either use hardware cloth of 1/4 inch mesh or smaller around the desirable plants or pack or remove the snow from around the base of the plants. Allow at least one foot or more packed down or shoveled area all the way around the base of the tree’s trunk.

Written by James Schuster, Extension Educator, Horticulture, and reviewed by Bruce Paulsrud, Extension Specialist, Pesticide Applicator Training and Plant Pathology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.