--- title: Drought Stress and Dieback | Northern Nevada Tree Guide url: https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/drought-stress-and-dieback/ business: Battle Born Tree Service address: 6301 US Highway 50 East, Carson City, NV 89701 phone: 775.232.8243 hours: Office Monday-Friday 8:30 am-5:00 pm; phones answered seven days a week; 24-hour emergency service credentials: ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A on staff; Nevada Business License # 20131580674; fully insured type: Tree service (removal, crane work, pruning, stump grinding, defensible space, snow removal, firewood) --- - [Home](https://battleborntreeservice.com/) - [Tree guide](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/) - Drought stress and dieback # Drought stress and dieback Drought stress shows as scorched or curled leaves, early fall color and leaf drop, and in conifers browning needles and wilting twigs. Repeated stress leads to dieback from the top of the crown, and symptoms can appear a year or two after the dry spell. - **Early signs:** Brown or curled leaves, scorched leaf edges, early leaf drop; browning needles in conifers - **Later signs:** Dead twigs and branch tips in the upper crown, then sucker growth along the trunk - **Timing:** Symptoms may not show for one to two years after the event - **Follow-on problems:** Wood borers, root rots, cankers; bark beetles in pines - **Local setting:** Valley and foothill stations average about 4 to 12 inches of precipitation a year Stressed trees are open to borers, root rots and bark beetles. Northern Nevada trees live on little natural water, and most of the trees in our yards are watered by people. When the water falls short, the tree reports it slowly. This page covers the signs, the pattern dieback takes, and when pruning or removal is the right decision. Battle Born Tree Service does not spray, inject or apply products to trees. We identify the problem, prune out dead or hazardous wood and remove trees that cannot be saved. ## What does drought stress look like? Michigan State University Extension lists the first signs in broadleaf trees as brown or curled leaves, scorched leaf edges and sometimes early leaf drop. Montana State University Extension adds premature fall color. In conifers the signs are browning needles and wilting twigs. Utah State University Extension notes that several years of scorch can show up as dieback in the upper canopy, and that sucker growth along the trunk is a later sign of stress. Timing is the trap. Texas A&M Forest Service notes that scattered trees are likely to die for several years following a drought. A tree that dries out in August can look fine until the next summer. ## How does dieback differ from other problems? Drought dieback starts at the top and the outer edges of the crown, where water has the farthest to travel, and moves inward. Leaf browning between the veins on every branch is more likely scorch. Browning on one limb only points to a different cause, such as a canker, a girdling root or a broken limb. Lace-like leaves are insects; see [elm leaf beetle](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/elm-leaf-beetle/). A pine or fir whose whole crown fades after a dry year may have been attacked by beetles; see [bark beetles in pines](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/bark-beetles-in-pines/) and [fir engraver](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/fir-engraver/). ## Why is it a local problem? NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals put annual precipitation at 4.15 inches in Hawthorne, 4.77 in Fallon, 7.35 at the Reno airport and 9.34 in Carson City, and 11.7 inches at Virginia City. See [climate normals by station](https://battleborntreeservice.com/data/climate-normals-by-station/). A tree on the valley floor survives on irrigation, so a broken sprinkler zone, a changed watering schedule or a lawn removal can be enough to start a decline. ## What does an arborist check? An arborist checks the pattern of the dead tips, the root crown and soil, signs of borers, cankers or bark beetles, and how much of the crown is dead. They also look for dead limbs that could fall. - Whether the dead tips follow a pattern that suggests water supply, such as the side of the tree away from the irrigation - Root crown and soil: compaction, recent digging, grade changes or covered roots - Signs of borers, cankers or bark beetles on stressed wood - The percentage of the crown that is dead, and whether live buds and green cambium remain - Dead limbs that could fall onto a roof, driveway or play area ## When is pruning or removal the answer? Texas A&M Forest Service notes that wood borers, root rots and canker diseases are especially common after drought, and bark beetles are a concern for pines in the year or so after a dry spell. That is why dead wood in a stressed tree is worth removing: it is the first place these problems take hold, and it is the part most likely to fall. See [dead wooding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/dead-wooding/). Watering is up to the tree's owner; our guide covers it for the high desert: [watering mature trees](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/watering-mature-trees-high-desert/). Removal is the answer when the crown is mostly dead, when scratching the twigs shows no green tissue, when decay has reached the trunk or roots, or when the tree is too close to a house to leave dead wood overhead. A tree that has a lot of live crown left and a sound trunk is usually kept, with the dead wood pruned out. Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243) for a free estimate and an assessment by an ISA Certified Arborist. See [tree removal](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/tree-removal/) and [how to tell if a tree is dead or dying](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/is-my-tree-dead-or-dying/). ### Sources - [Michigan State University Extension: Extended drought may threaten tree health](https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/extended_drought_may_threaten_tree_health) (read October 17, 2026) - [Montana State University Extension: Drought Stress](https://www.montana.edu/extension/Full_HTML_Pubs/a-guide-to-pests-problems-and-identification-of-ornamental-shrubs-and-trees-in-montana/abiotic-issues/drought-stress.html) (read October 17, 2026) - [Texas A&M Forest Service: Effects of Drought on Trees](https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/?p=9662) (read October 17, 2026) - [Utah State University Extension: Leaf Scorch](https://extension.usu.edu/planthealth/ipm/notes_orn/list-treeshrubs/leaf-scorch) (read October 17, 2026) - [NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020](https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/land-based-station/us-climate-normals) (retrieved October 1, 2026) ### Talk to the office [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243) | Monday to Friday | 8:30 am - 5:00 pm | |---|---| | Saturday and Sunday | Office closed, phones answered | Phones answered seven days a week. 24-hour emergency service. [Free estimate](#quote) ### Keep reading - [Watering mature trees in the high desert](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/watering-mature-trees-high-desert/) - [Snow, rain and temperature normals by weather station](https://battleborntreeservice.com/data/climate-normals-by-station/) - [Bark beetles in pines](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-guide/bark-beetles-in-pines/) - [Dead wooding](https://battleborntreeservice.com/tree-services/dead-wooding/) - [How to tell if a tree is dead or dying](https://battleborntreeservice.com/guides/is-my-tree-dead-or-dying/) ### Terms on this page [Canker](https://battleborntreeservice.com/glossary/canker/) [Girdling root](https://battleborntreeservice.com/glossary/girdling-root/) [Arborist](https://battleborntreeservice.com/glossary/arborist/) [Cambium](https://battleborntreeservice.com/glossary/cambium/) [The full glossary](https://battleborntreeservice.com/glossary/) ## Questions people ask Still have a question? Call [775.232.8243](tel:775.232.8243). Phones are answered seven days a week. ### How can I tell if my tree is dead or just stressed? Scratch a small twig. Green tissue under the bark means it is alive. A tree with live buds on most branches may recover; one with no green anywhere in the crown will not. ### Why did my tree decline a year after the dry spell? Drought damage often shows late: Texas A&M Forest Service notes that scattered trees are likely to die for several years following a drought. ### Does drought make trees more likely to get pests? Yes. Texas A&M Forest Service lists wood borers, root rots and cankers as common after drought, and bark beetles in pines. ### When should a stressed tree be removed? When most of the crown is dead, when the trunk or roots are decayed, or when dead wood threatens a building. An arborist can assess it.