But what happens to trees after shedding their leaves and becoming covered in snow or ice for the winter? Are they dead or dormant? Trees have survival instincts just like people and animals.

Q: I have a fruitless olive tree that is steadily losing its leaves. It’s been slowly happening since last year, but most noticeably with the higher temps we’ve been experiencing lately.

Trees in the Netherlands are dropping their leaves some two to three weeks later than they did 60 years ago because of the warmer weather in September and October, according to website Nature Today.