diff --git a/plugin/NERD_tree.vim b/plugin/NERD_tree.vim
index 35b47c3..47f591a 100644
--- a/plugin/NERD_tree.vim
+++ b/plugin/NERD_tree.vim
@@ -69,7 +69,7 @@ call s:initVariable("g:NERDTreeShowHidden", 0)
 call s:initVariable("g:NERDTreeShowLineNumbers", 0)
 call s:initVariable("g:NERDTreeSortDirs", 1)
 
-if !nerdtree#runningWindows() && !nerdtree#runningCygwin()
+if !nerdtree#runningWindows() && !nerdtree#runningCygwin() && &encoding == "utf-8"
     call s:initVariable("g:NERDTreeDirArrowExpandable", "▸")
     call s:initVariable("g:NERDTreeDirArrowCollapsible", "▾")
 else