30 Views

Why don't trees freeze and burst in the winter like cold pipes?


Grag 16th Nov, 2021
Answer (1)
Nitin Mereddy 16th Nov, 2021

In many cases, trees do partially freeze in the cold of winter and burst like plumbing pipes in an unheated home. When liquid water freezes to ice, it expands in volume because of the way the water molecules spread out to form a solid crystalline lattice. If the water is contained in a closed vessel, it can press so hard as it freezes and expands that it bursts the container. This explosive effect is common in insufficiently heated houses, where the cold leads the plumbing pipes to burst. The fluid transport tissue in trees (xylem and phloem) can be seen as little pipes carrying water and nutrients throughout the tree. They too can freeze and burst, causing the tree to crack and/or explode. The crackling sound or gun-shot pop you hear in the forest in the winter is the sound of trees freezing and bursting. The bursting is usually not as violent or as deadly to the tree as you may first expect for a few reasons. A tree has hundreds to tens of thousands of these fluid channels. If one bursts, the tree has plenty of other ones to rely on. Furthermore, each channel is small, so that an individual channel bursting does not do much damage.

Related Questions

UPES Integrated LLB Admission...
Apply
Ranked #28 amongst Institutions in India by NIRF | Ranked #1 in India for Academic Reputation by QS University Rankings | 16.6 LPA Highest CTC
SLAT 2025 - The Symbiosis Law...
Apply
Conducted by Symbiosis International (Deemed University) | Ranked #5 in Law by NIRF | Ranked #2 among best Pvt Universities by QS World Rankings
Jindal Global Law School Admi...
Apply
Ranked #1 Law School in India & South Asia by QS- World University Rankings | Merit cum means scholarships
Symbiosis Law School Pune Adm...
Apply
NAAC A++ Accredited | Ranked #5 by NIRF
Nirma University Law Admissio...
Apply
Grade 'A+' accredited by NAAC
Great Lakes PGPM & PGDM 2025
Apply
Admissions Open | Globally Recognized by AACSB (US) & AMBA (UK) | 17.3 LPA Avg. CTC for PGPM 2024 | Application Deadline: 1st Dec 2024
View All Application Forms

Download the Careers360 App on your Android phone

Regular exam updates, QnA, Predictors, College Applications & E-books now on your Mobile

150M+ Students
30,000+ Colleges
500+ Exams
1500+ E-books