If you come upon a tree during a winter or stormy day, how would you tell whether the tree is alive or not?

Answer 1

Often you can tell if a broad-leaf deciduous tree is alive just by looking at the smaller branches on the tree. If the bark on them appears shriveled, that branch is probably dead. See next paragraph for explanation. If this is so, try to bend the branch. If it snaps, it's gone, but if it bends, it should still have some life in it. As a last resort you can scrape off the bark layer to see if the underlying layer is still green as has been suggested, but you can usually tell visually by looking at them.

The living layer beneath the bark will shrink when it dies, so the thin layer of bark over it will pucker like your fingers do if you spend too much time in the bathtub or swimming pool. If you see this on all of the small twigs on the tree, it's probably toast.

Conifers are usually pretty easy to tell if they are alive, but be careful. Most conifers are evergreen and retain their needles during the winter. There are a couple of species of conifers that are deciduous and shed their needles, so don't be fooled by them. You may not want to cut one up for firewood either, because they are usually protected in many locations.

Answer 2

With a pointy knife peel a nickle sized piece of bark off the trunk of the tree approximately eye point. The cambium (inner bark next to the wood) would be white or a greenish white in a stay tree. If the interior bark is brown or black the tree is lifeless.

Answer 3

grab a small twig from the tree in your fingers and scrape off a bit of the skin with your fingernail, if it is green underneith the bark layer it is alive. if it is dry and white and snaps easily, it is dead. Do this in a few places to make sure it is totally dead or maybe somewhat alive. Do NOT peel off the bark on the trunk to test for the green layer!.... Just incase it is a living tree., you will cause injury to it and leave it open for infection.

Answer 4

there are two methods to this. the first is to try and snap a twig off if it gives it is alive.

the second method is to scratch the bark on a small branch or a twig. you can do this with a pocket knife of even just your thumbnail. at the edges of the bark if it green then the tree is alive. if it is brown and dry feeling it is dead.

hope this helps

Answer 5

i assume you mean when they have no leaves...
well for pines and ever greens... they tend to discolor or turn down when dying/dead.
leaf bearing trees are a little more difficult to tell.
sometimes they get rotten or weak looking.
i have a neighbor how just cut down some branches on a tree that was obviously had several dead sections... it looked weak and didn't have any new growth or leaves on it for years.
if you push on a dead/rotten tree it should fall easily or give and lean when you push. healthy trees normally have a firm pressure and won't lean/give too much when you push on them

Answer 6

Get a branch and try and snap it, if it just bends and flexes it is alive, if it snaps off, it is dead, or at least that branch is.

Answer 7

Try to snap a twig. RScott

Answer 8

it should get green leaves on it and if it doesn't it might just be dead if it looks sick or drab no life in it