Fall in the St. Charles and St. Louis area means crisp mornings, falling leaves, and pumpkin everything, but it’s also a critical time to prepare your trees for the stress of winter. As temperatures drop and the growing season comes to an end, a little care now can go a long way toward keeping your trees healthy, strong, and ready for spring.

Whether you’re caring for mature maples or newly planted ornamentals, this fall guide covers essential steps including pruning, mulching, trunk protection, and watering, to give your trees the best shot at surviving (and thriving after) a Missouri winter.

Why Fall Tree Care Matters in Missouri

Missouri winters can be tough on trees. Rapid temperature swings, freeze-thaw cycles, heavy snow, and drying winds all take their toll, especially on young or vulnerable trees. In areas like St. Charles and St. Louis, where winters can fluctuate between mild and severe, your trees need to be as resilient as possible heading into dormancy during winter.

Fall is the ideal time to assess their health, address structural issues, and make sure they’re equipped to handle whatever winter brings.

Late-Season Pruning: What, When, and Why

Fall is a smart time to perform structural pruning – especially once the leaves have dropped and the tree’s shape becomes more visible. Proper pruning reduces the risk of storm damage, encourages healthy growth in spring, and helps prevent the spread of disease.

Focus on removing:

• Dead or damaged branches
• Branches that cross or rub against each other
• Suckers and water sprouts (those fast-growing vertical shoots)

Avoid heavy pruning too early in the fall, as it may stimulate new growth that’s vulnerable to frost. Aim for late October through November, once trees are fully dormant or nearly there.

Important: Pruning large trees or dealing with high limbs should always be handled by a certified arborist. Improper cuts can do more harm than good, or put your safety at risk.

Protecting Young Tree Trunks from Winter Sunscald in Missouri

If you’ve planted trees within the last few years, you’ll want to protect them from sunscald, a common winter injury in Missouri. On sunny winter days, bark warms up and becomes active, only to be damaged when temperatures drop suddenly at night.

You can prevent this by wrapping the trunks of young or thin-barked trees (such as maples or lindens) with commercial tree wrap or plastic tree guards. Begin at the base and wrap upward to just below the lowest branches. Be sure to remove the wrap in early spring as leaving the wrap on for too long can trap moisture and invite pests.

Mulch: Your Tree’s Winter Blanket

A fresh layer of mulch around your trees acts like insulation, protecting roots from extreme temperature fluctuations and helping retain moisture during dry winter months.

Apply two to four inches of organic mulch, such as shredded bark or wood chips, in a wide, even circle around the base of the tree. Keep the mulch a few inches away from the trunk, like a donut, not piled against the trunk like a volcano. Piling mulch against the trunk traps moisture and invites rot or rodent damage.

Fall is a great time to refresh mulch that’s broken down over the summer. Not only does it improve winter protection, but it also gives your landscape a clean, well-maintained appearance.

Don’t Forget to Water

Late fall watering is one of the most overlooked – a but most important – steps in preparing trees for winter. Missouri often has dry stretches in late summer and early fall, and trees that go into winter already stressed by drought are more vulnerable to damage.

Before the ground freezes, give your trees a deep, slow watering, especially if rainfall has been light. Focus on the root zone, which extends out to the tree’s drip line (the edge of the canopy). This is especially important for:

• Newly planted trees (within the last two to three years)
• Evergreens, which continue to lose moisture throughout winter

Watering deeply in fall helps trees store moisture and nutrients, which they’ll rely on through winter dormancy.

When to Call in the Pros

While many fall tree care tasks are DIY-friendly, others are best handled by professionals. If you’re unsure how to prune properly, notice signs of disease, or have large, mature trees that need attention, a certified arborist can help.

At Hansen’s Tree Service, we offer science-based, eco-friendly tree care throughout St. Charles and St. Louis, as well as the Lake of the Ozarks region. From fall pruning and mulching to disease management and storm prep, our team helps your trees stay safe and healthy year-round.

Book Your Fall Tree Care Appointment Today

Now’s the time to give your trees the care they need before winter sets in. Whether you’re cleaning up deadwood, protecting young trees, or just not sure where to start, Hansen’s Tree Service is here to help.

Contact us today for a fall tree assessment or pruning quote!