To treat cold-damaged plants, first assess the extent of the damage. Wait to prune dead material until the risk of frost is over, and add water and mulch to help your plants recover.
It is also important to monitor your plants to see if they show signs of recovery or if other conditions appear. For this article, we spoke with two experts who’ll share valuable advice on how to identify and save cold-damaged plants.
If you’re not in the mood to get out of your cozy, warm home to work in the cold for the sake of your plants, remember that you can count on our landscaping pros to do the job for you.
1. Identify Signs of Cold Damage
First, it is important to understand what kind of problem you’re dealing with. Cold damage typically “occurs quickly and after a period of low temperatures that cause damage to the plant,” says Lauren Goldsby, Extension agent for Bay County in Florida, which experienced historic winter weather in early 2025. “The extent of the damage depends on how cold it gets and how long the event lasts.”
Signs of cold damage include “blackened, wilted, translucent, or water-soaked leaves shortly after a freeze. Cold damage is often limited to exposed plant parts or new growth,” explains Karen Mitchell, Extension specialist at Purdue University.
Other signs of frost damage on plants include:
- Frost cracks (in trees with thin bark)
- Distorted and falling leaves
- Mushy stems
Mitchell also explains that “other types of stress, like drought, disease, or nutrient deficiency, develop more gradually, and the symptoms are more evenly distributed across the plant.”
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2. Don’t Prune Right Away
Put the shears down for now. “Do not prune frost-damaged plants until the risk of freeze is over,” Goldsby warns. Another important sign, according to Mitchell, is to “wait until the new growth appears in spring to assess the extent of cold damage.” However, Goldsby says that “if the cold damage has left soft tissue that is rotting, you can remove that.”
But why is it important to wait? Goldsby says, “Dead or damaged leaves serve as protection for the plant throughout the rest of the winter. Pruning after cold damage can also encourage the plant to start growing before it is safe to do so.”
“Leave the damaged tissue on until after the risk of frost has passed,” she concludes.
3. Water Dry Soil
Injured plants need water to recover. After the freeze, check your soil for dryness and to see if it is frozen. Frozen soil means the water is not getting to your plants, which can cause dryness. If the risk of frost has passed, you can lightly water the area to help defrost the soil and hydrate your plants.
Wait until the sun comes out in late morning or early afternoon to water the soil (avoid watering the plants’ stems, flowers, or leaves) with about 1 inch of water. Once you see signs your plant is recovering, you can resume your regular watering schedule.
4. Spread Organic Mulch
Spread mulch over your soil once the risk of frost has passed and temperatures start to rise steadily again. Remember to check the soil before you apply mulch, though: It is important that the soil is not frozen when you spread the mulch.
Use organic mulch, as it will help nourish the soil by providing organic matter as it decomposes. Spread a 2- to 3-inch layer on your flower beds and around 2 to 4 inches of mulch around your shrubs and trees.
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5. Prune Dead Plant Tissue
Now that the risk of frost has passed and you’ve started to see early spring growth, you can finally remove the dead material from your plants. Some of your plants might have already shed dead leaves on their own, but if not, you can prune them with good-quality pruning shears.
Before snipping off (apparently) dead twigs on shrubs and trees, follow this advice from Mitchell: “For woody plants, use the scratch test to evaluate the damage. Lightly scratch the bark, and if you see a thin layer of green tissue, that branch is still alive.”
With this test, you can identify where the damage starts and where the healthy tissue is. Cut away the dead tissue just below the dead tissue, where the healthy tissue starts.
See Related: Pruning 101: How to Trim Bushes, Hedges, and Shrubs
6. Keep an Eye Out for Other Problems
Be patient and monitor your plants to see if they will successfully recover. Some will show new growth early in the season, while others might take a month or two. If you notice your plant is not growing as it should and not absorbing water normally, this may signal root damage.
Additionally, keep an eye out for root rot or other diseases that might have overwintered in your plants and show signs in early spring. Signs of fungal and bacterial diseases that might appear in spring are:
- Raised, circular specks on leaves (indicating artillery fungus)
- Dark brown leaf spots on boxwood (indicating boxwood blight)
- Darkened or decaying roots (sign of root rot)
- Leaf spots (leaf spot diseases can be caused by various fungi and bacteria)
- Powdery, felt-like blotches or spots on leaves, stems, and buds (signs of powdery mildew)
FAQ
Yes, but only when the risk of frost has passed and the spring temperatures rise again. Fertilizing before spring green-up can encourage new growth while temperatures are still too cold.
Frost happens when ice particles form on the surface of the plant tissue, usually causing only minor damage. Freeze damage is more significant, as it happens when the plant cells themselves freeze, damaging plant tissue.
It depends on your plant, the temperatures it was exposed to, and for how long. If it shows completely black foliage and mushy stems, the plant is likely dead. However, if the plant shows signs of new growth within the first 2 months, it will likely recover.
Native plants typically recover on their own after cold damage since they are hardy in that area. However, if you experience unusually cold temperatures for your region, even native plants might be damaged or killed.
If they appear damaged, treat them for cold damage as you would any other plant. If they were killed by the unusually cold temperatures, replace them in the spring.
When to Call a Pro
If you’re still unsure about how to examine and treat your cold-damaged plants, consider calling a professional. At LawnStarter, we have experienced brush trimming pros to prune your woody plants and landscaping pros to spread mulch.
Sources:
- Karen A Mitchell, consumer horticulture Extension specialist at Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN. Personal interview.
- Lauren Goldsby, commercial and environmental horticulture agent at the University of Florida/IFAS Extension, Panama City, FL. Personal interview.
- “How to Protect Plants from Frost and Freeze.” By Aaron Steil, consumer horticulture Extension specialist. Iowa State University.
- “Treating Cold-Damaged Plants.” IFAS Extension, University of Florida.
Main Image: A frost caused leaves to turn black. Image Credit: Stefan / Adobe Stock
