Ask Burton: This week, we’ve been asked questions due to the winter storm. After a month to observe how the plants are recovering, this is what we’re seeing.

Palms – Palms which were covered are generally OK. Palms that were not protected from the freeze did not do well. Many have died or at least been seriously damaged.
Abelia – Most of the abelia that were damaged by the cold were the newer, variegated types. Those plants look like they’ll mostly recover.
Ligustrum – Sunshine and variegated privet were damaged, but most should recover. Waxleaf ligustrums took a real beating, and many waxleaf ligustrums will not.
Loropetalum – Badly damaged. We’ve seen some with new growth and some that look quite dead. It’s hit or miss.
Pittosporum – Unprotected pittosporum are mostly dead.
Indian hawthorn – These did not do well. Most are damaged enough to warrant removal.
Live oak – They’ll be fine. Just fertilize them and wait. You won’t be able to tell they took a hit in a month or two.
Nandina – If your nandina were thinned badly by the freeze, cut them to the ground and fertilize them. They’ll regrow quickly.
Even plants that are not normally affected by our cold weather felt this one. Pines were damaged in East Texas, and we’ve seen modest damage on many other plantings. If you’re not sure about how well your own plants have fared, wait a couple more weeks. By then, you should see new growth on most shrubs damaged by the cold and will be better able to tell how far back to prune them or whether they need to be removed. Palm recovery, where it’s possible, will take longer.