Frost cracks occur when sap inside trees quickly freezes as temperatures drop. The condition affects trees with softer bark, particularly maples and lindens. “That kind of happens with maples and lindens with a softer-barked tree basically,” Whittlesey said.

A huge winter storm is coming.

Frost cracking is most likely in maple, birch and linden trees, which tend to have thinner bark than others, Otto said.