| For most areas of the United States, floods are rare but devastating events. People who live in floodplains and flood prone areas become more familiar with them, but no one ever really gets used to them. Trees, like people, weather floods with varying degrees of damage. However, few trees will escape floods completely unharmed.
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Identifying flood damage and mitigating it pose a challenge to well trained professionals and homeowners alike. Trees that have potentially been damaged by floods should be evaluated by a professional arborist or urban forester when possible.
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Floods damage trees through:
The links above to "roots" and "tree decline" will take you to additional information and photos to identify specific damage to your tree.
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Tree roots can sustain hidden damage from standing flood waters
Davenport, Iowa 2001
© David Teska/FEMA News Photo
To see additional pictures of hurricane damage, follow this link to:FEMA's Photo Library
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How floods can affect trees:
- Flood waters can wash soil away, exposing roots to drying temperatures and wind
- Flood waters can saturate the soil, depriving the roots of oxygen
- Overall tree decline sets in
- Advantageous fungus and insects cause further tree decline
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The level of damage to a tree from floods
increases with:
- Floods during the growing season
- Long term floods
- Heavy deposition of sediments (greater than 3 inches deep)
- Flooding of newly planted trees
- Conifers having lower branches covered by flood waters
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Last Updated:
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