How to tell if a tree is dead in five checks
Run these checks from the ground on twigs you can reach. Do not climb, and do not stand under a limb you think is dead.
Scratch a twig
Pick a twig about as thick as a pencil and scrape a small patch of bark with your thumbnail. Green, moist wood underneath means that twig is alive. Brown, dry wood means that twig is dead, which does not yet prove the whole tree is.
Bend a twig
Bend a thin twig gently. Texas A&M Forest Service says a twig that bends without snapping still holds moisture. A twig that is brittle and breaks easily may point to dieback or a dead tree.
Check the buds
Look at the tips of the branches. A live tree has small, tight buds there in winter. Pinch one open. A live bud is moist and often green inside, and a dead bud is dry and crumbles.
Look at the bark
Walk around the trunk. Bark falling off in sheets with dry wood underneath is a bad sign, and so is a long crack down the trunk or through a main fork. A gray or brown crust where bark has peeled off a stressed oak or elm can be hypoxylon canker, and the Forest Service says there is no cure for it.
Check the base
Mushrooms, shelf fungus or soft, crumbly wood at the base point to rot in the roots or lower trunk. So does a hollow sound when you tap the trunk. These signs matter more than a bare top, because a tree usually fails at the base or the trunk.
Test twigs on at least three sides of the tree, then move in to thicker branches. One dead twig is normal. Texas A&M Forest Service says brown, dry wood in several places means the tree may be dying or dead.
If an oak's leaves are changing color in a pattern, or a few oaks nearby are changing together, read about oak wilt before you decide anything. A forester or a lab has to confirm oak wilt, and a cut in spring can spread it.
North Texas trees that look dead in spring
Many trees that look dead in March and April are right on schedule. A few kinds fool people every year.
Mesquite
Mesquite leafs out late. A study of honey mesquite in West Texas found that its buds rarely break before the last spring frost. Do the scratch test and wait.
Pecan
Scratch a pecan's twigs before you judge it. If they are green, give the tree time. Our pecan tree care guide covers the drought stress and limb drop that can harm pecans.
Crepe myrtle
After a hard freeze, crepe myrtles can leaf out weeks late. Wait until new buds open. Live stems grow leaves, and dead ones stay bare and snap. Our crepe myrtle trimming guide explains what to cut once you can see which stems died.
Live oak
Live oaks hold their leaves through winter and drop many of them in spring as new leaves come in. A live oak dropping leaves in March is usually normal. Brown leaves that are not replaced, or veins turning color, are a reason to read the oak wilt guide.
The National Weather Service puts the average last freeze at DFW on March 12, and the latest freeze in its records came on April 13. A tree that is still bare in mid-March may not be ready yet. A tree that is still bare in late May, while the same kind of tree down the street is full, needs a closer look.
Why trees die slowly after drought and freezes
North Texas trees rarely die overnight. The cause usually came a season or two before you notice.
After a drought
Texas A&M Forest Service warns that drought stress "may linger for years, long after soil moisture returns." In a dry late summer, some trees drop their leaves early and go dormant ahead of time. The Forest Service says it may not be possible to tell whether a tree survived a long drought until the following spring.
So a tree that dropped its leaves in a hot September may still be alive. Water it deeply under the outer branches, scratch twigs on several sides and see what spring brings.
After a hard freeze
Freeze damage also shows late. After Winter Storm Uri in 2021, the Forest Service asked Texans to wait until mid-July before cutting down leafless trees. A tree removed in March cannot leaf out in May.
When only part of the tree dies
Sometimes only one side or the top dies. Common causes are root damage from trenching, a new driveway or soil piled over the roots. A tree like that can often stay once the dead limbs come out and the cause is fixed. Our tree health care visit looks for the cause first and refers you to a specialist when a test or treatment is needed.
When a dead tree becomes a hazard
A dead tree over a house, drive or play area should come down soon, while one in an open field can wait. Texas A&M Forest Service says dead trees "should be felled and removed as soon as possible if they pose a hazard."
Signs a dead tree needs attention now
- A new lean, with cracked or lifted soil on the far side.
- A crack down the trunk or through a main fork.
- Big dead limbs over the roof, the drive, a play area or the street.
- Mushrooms or soft wood at the base.
- Limbs that keep breaking over the same spot.
- Bark sliding off in sheets with bare wood underneath.
One sign does not prove a tree will fall, but it does mean the tree needs a closer look. Stay out from under hanging limbs.
Why a dead tree takes more care to take down
Dead branches can snap without warning, and they may not safely hold a climber or a rope, so a dead tree takes more time and rope work than a live tree of the same size. Dead wood also gets more brittle the longer it stands, which is one more reason not to wait for a dead tree to come down on its own.
Trees near a house come down in pieces, and heavy limbs are lowered by rope. The plan and the cleanup are written down and approved before the first cut. See how tree removal works step by step, and what changes the price in our guide to tree removal cost.
“Daniel was great removed our bradford pear tree that was over 40 feet tall that was just falling apart. … Will use him again and refer to family and friends.”
Power lines and city trees
If a dead tree or limb touches a power line, stay away and call Oncor or 911 first. In Fort Worth, a tree in the street right-of-way, an alley or a city park belongs to the city. You can report a possible hazard by calling the City Call Center at (817) 392-1234, by calling 311 or through the MyFW app. A tree that is down on your house or car right now calls for emergency tree service.
What to write down before you call
- Take one wide photo of the whole tree from the same spot each week.
- Take a close-up of a scratched twig from each side.
- Write down the date you first noticed the change.
- Note anything that happened first, like a freeze, a dry summer, a trench, a new patio or a storm.
- List what sits under the tree, such as a roof, fence, pool, drive or the neighbor's yard.
Use simple labels like "pecan by the drive" so every photo and note matches.