Normal needle drop

About

Each year pines and other evergreens shed their oldest, innermost needles, which turn yellow and then brown first. It can look alarming, especially on white pine, but it is healthy and needs no treatment.

Also called Senescence, seasonal needle drop, fall needle drop, normal needle drop, needle drop, natural needle drop, inner needle browning

How to recognize it

Symptoms

Needles on the inside of branches, nearest the trunk, turn yellow, then brown, and fall, while the branch tips stay green. White pine drops its 2- and 3-year-old needles in fall, leaving only this year's growth, and on big trees the yellow can outnumber the green. Arborvitae sheds little branchlets that brown inside the plant and may hang on a long time; spruce and fir thin out older needles gradually, and yews shed 3-year-old needles in late spring or early summer.

Often confused with

If this year's new growth at the branch tips is discolored or wilted, it is not normal needle drop; suspect disease, insects or another problem and have it diagnosed.

Worse when

Dry weather makes shedding heavier and more noticeable.

How it spreads

It does not spread; it is part of the tree's normal life cycle.

When

Mostly fall, especially on pines; yews shed in late spring or early summer.

What to do, gentlest first

This is not an infection, so sprays for diseases won't help. Fix the cause below.

1. Good care in dry spells Prevent

   Drought makes the drop heavier, so keep up good care, including watering evergreens during dry periods.

2. Check the tips, then relax By hand

   No treatment is needed. Look at the newest growth at the branch ends: if it is green and healthy, the yellowing inside is normal.

Plants it affects

Arborvitae, Colorado blue spruce, Eastern white pine, Yew