Peter Elliott at 13 ON YOUR SIDE said it plainly: the videos, the maps, and the memes make it sound like something out of an action movie – trees “exploding” in the bitter cold – so he set out to ask the obvious question people are throwing around online.
And once you hear what the experts told him, the whole thing starts to make a lot more sense, because what’s going on is real, it can sound scary, but it’s usually not the violent blast people imagine when they hear the word “explosion.”
Elliott framed it as a reality check for West Michigan viewers, but honestly, it’s the same question anyone in a cold snap state ends up asking after scrolling through dramatic winter clips: is my yard about to turn into a splinter factory, or is the internet just doing internet things again?
He said experts called the “exploding trees” label an exaggeration, and that the more accurate term is frost cracking, which can happen in any cold environment – even in your own backyard if the conditions line up.
That distinction matters, because the internet version of this story makes it sound like a tree is basically a bomb with bark, and Elliott’s reporting pushes back on that fear in a way that feels grounded and useful.
What “Frost Cracking” Really Is, And Why It Happens
Elliott introduced one of the experts he spoke with as Zachary Froster, a certified arborist who runs his own tree care business in Muskegon County, and Froster explained the basic mechanism in simple terms.
According to Froster, what you’re usually seeing isn’t an explosion at all – it’s wood separating, forming a crack in the trunk, and the driving force is a temperature mismatch between the outside and the inside of the tree.
Froster told Elliott the outside wood gets colder faster than the inside, and that uneven cooling creates pressure; the tree relieves that pressure by cracking, which is why you can end up with a long split that wasn’t there before.
That explanation is one of those rare moments where the science is straightforward enough that you can visualize it immediately – like a stressed material giving way – without needing a textbook to translate it.
Elliott said Froster showed him a tree in his own backyard that has slowly opened up over the years, which helps underline that this is often a gradual story, not a sudden tree detonation where everything flies apart.
Still, Froster didn’t pretend it’s silent or subtle, because it isn’t.
He told Elliott that when a tree cracks, it can make a sound that’s sharp enough to jolt you – he described it as a gunshot sound – and if you hear that at night during a deep freeze, your brain is going to do what brains do and jump to the most dramatic explanation.
But Froster’s point, as Elliott relayed it, was that even if it sounds startling, it’s not typically going to “blow up,” throw shrapnel, and drop instantly like a snapped utility pole.
That’s the piece social media often leaves out: the sound can be intense, but sound alone doesn’t tell you how catastrophic the event is.
Can A Tree Actually “Explode,” Or Is That Pure Myth?
Elliott didn’t stop with one expert, and he brought in Julie Crick, a natural resources educator at Michigan State University Extension, who added a layer of nuance that keeps the story honest.
Crick told Elliott that trees can explode, but she emphasized that it’s very unlikely, and she described historic accounts where trees have shattered enough for people to “see through them,” which is a wild detail even if it’s rare.
So the viral claim isn’t completely made up in the sense that unusual events have happened, but Elliott’s reporting makes it clear that the everyday winter reality is much more ordinary: cracking, splitting, and stress releases – not trunks bursting apart like fireworks.
Crick also explained that frost cracking can happen in almost any tree, but it tends to show up where a tree is already compromised – wounds, weak points, or places where a branch stub tore out and left a vulnerable spot.
That detail is important because it shifts the “exploding tree” narrative away from random chaos and toward something that follows patterns: trees with existing stress or damage are more likely to crack when conditions get harsh.
Elliott’s piece also mentioned that younger trees can be more susceptible because their bark is thinner, which is a reminder that not all trees handle cold stress the same way, and the age and structure of a tree can change the risk.
If you’re a homeowner, that’s the kind of practical context you actually need, because most people aren’t worried about a tree cracking in the woods; they’re worried about the big one leaning over the roofline.
The Risk Isn’t “Shrapnel,” It’s The Slow Failure Later
One of the smartest parts of Elliott’s report is that it didn’t swing from panic to denial; it landed in the middle, where the truth usually lives.
Froster and Crick both told Elliott there’s nothing you can do to prevent these cracks from forming when conditions are right, which is frustrating but realistic, because nature isn’t waiting for a homeowner’s schedule.
But Froster also pointed out that a weakened tree can pose a real risk to property over time, especially if it’s cracked and hanging over a home or a place where people walk and park.
His warning, as Elliott reported it, was basically this: if a tree is above your house and it’s cracked, it may eventually fail at that weak point, and that’s the danger – less “instant explosion,” more “this could become a structural problem.”
That’s a far more believable risk than the online version, and it’s also the kind of risk that people ignore until a storm takes a limb down, which is why this topic catches fire online in the first place.
Elliott also relayed Froster’s explanation of another kind of cracking that can show up in winter videos: trees snapping because of external force, like too much snow or ice loading the canopy until the trunk or limbs can’t take the tension anymore.
Froster described the idea of a tree bending and bending under weight, and eventually the tension has to go somewhere, which is when you hear that sharp snap and see a sudden break.
That version isn’t a tree “exploding” either, but it can look dramatic on camera, especially if someone is filming at the exact right moment and the audio picks up the crack like a rifle shot.
From my perspective, this is where viral weather content can be both useful and misleading at the same time: it captures real phenomena, but it often labels them in the most fear-friendly way possible, because fear travels faster than explanations.
The Experts’ Message: Don’t Let The Internet Scare You Out Of Your Own Backyard
Elliott’s tone throughout the piece had a bit of humor – he joked about the “appropriately named” Zachary Froster and how funny it is that the two people they interviewed were named Crick and Froster – but the point underneath was serious: don’t let a viral phrase turn winter into a paranoia festival.
Froster told Elliott he thinks we need to stop the fearmongering, because he’s seen people online genuinely scared their homes are about to be destroyed by the “healthy, healthy trees” outside.
That line hits because it’s such a modern problem: people watch ten seconds of a dramatic clip, and suddenly every creak outside becomes a threat in their head, even if they’ve lived through winter their whole lives.
Crick, as Elliott described it, offered a more nature-forward way to look at it, basically framing those cracking sounds as one of the strange wonders of winter rather than a sign that the world is falling apart.
Elliott wrapped it with that same idea – get out in Michigan, enjoy the landscape, and understand that “popping trees” can be part of the season, not a reason to hide indoors like you’re waiting out a siege.
I’ll add this: when people say “the internet is making everyone anxious,” stories like this are exactly what they mean, because the word “explode” flips a switch in your brain, even though the reality is usually a crack, a sound, and a tree that keeps standing.
Elliott’s report worked because it didn’t mock the concern; it explained it, and it gave people a way to think about what they’re seeing without either panicking or dismissing the risk entirely.
The big takeaway from what Elliott heard from Froster and Crick is simple: trees can crack loudly in extreme cold, it can happen almost anywhere it gets bitter, and while true “explosions” are possible in rare cases, the common situation is frost cracking – dramatic sounding, often harmless in the moment, but worth paying attention to if the tree is already weakened and positioned where failure could do real damage.
Raised in a small Arizona town, Kevin grew up surrounded by rugged desert landscapes and a family of hunters. His background in competitive shooting and firearms training has made him an authority on self-defense and gun safety. A certified firearms instructor, Kevin teaches others how to properly handle and maintain their weapons, whether for hunting, home defense, or survival situations. His writing focuses on responsible gun ownership, marksmanship, and the role of firearms in personal preparedness.
