Why You Should Deal with your Damaged Trees
When your trees have been damaged, you could be looking at a number of problems for your property and your trees. Fallen trees can become tangled in utility lines, making them exceptionally dangerous, while damaged trees can continue to weaken and fall on your house, vehicle, or a nearby person or animal. Even if your damaged trees have done nothing to your property or home, they should still be seen by a qualified restoration service. It is possible to save trees that have been damaged by winds and storms.
Mature trees look like they can stand up to anything. Most of the time, they do, but, a big Florida storm can damage even the sturdiest of these tall beauties. You can give a tree a better chance of surviving if you take care of it with regular pruning. Here’s how to help trees weather a storm and assess the health of storm damaged trees.
Inspect Trees before a Storm
Before a storm, take a close look at your trees. Check for signs of damage or illness. If you see any the following, there could be trouble:
● A tree that leans
● Cracks in large branches or the tree trunk
● Branches hanging high up over a building
● Decay or disease anywhere in the tree
● A hollow area in the trunk
● Trees close to power lines
If you can’t inspect a tree yourself, contact a certified arborist to assess your tree’s health.
Preventative Measures for Storm Damaged Trees
If you see a problem with a tree, a certified, licensed tree specialist may be able to help. It’s best to eliminate small problems before they turn into large ones. Here are some things that can help storm damaged trees:
● Prune dead, damaged or diseased branches
● Trim excess growth
● Remove branchesthat hang over your house or the street
● Have a professional remove or trim a tree that’s close to a power line
It’s best to hire knowledgeable professionals to prune, trim or remove a tree. Mature tree branches are dangerous and heavy. If a tree is young, and you don’t need a ladder to work, you may be able to do the pruning yourself.
After a Storm
Once a storm passes, you can assess the damage. Use extreme caution as you look at your trees. It’s easy to miss broken branches caught high in the canopy. If you see a power line on the ground or in a tree, stay well away and call the power company. If you’re not sure if a tree made it through OK, your tree specialist can check it for damage. Follow these simple steps for dealing with damaged trees after a storm.
If the tree is healthy, is not creating a hazard, and did not suffer major structural damage, it will generally recover if you take first aid measures immediately.
The larger a broken limb is, the harder it will be for the tree to recover from the damage. If most of the main branches are gone, the tree may have little chance of surviving and removal should be considered.
In species where a leader is important to upward growth or desirable appearance, it’s a judgment call. The tree may live without its leader, but it will be stunted or deformed.
Is at least 50 percent of the tree’s crown (branches and leaves) still intact? This is a good rule of thumb on tree’s ability to regenerate and survive. A tree with less than half of its branches remaining may not be able to produce enough food to survive another season. Removal should be considered.
How big are the wounds? Larger wounds are less likely to heal, leaving the tree vulnerable to disease and insects. A 2- to 3-inch wound on a 12-inch diameter limb will seal over with new wood and bark within a couple of years.
Seek Professional Help
When deciding which trees to remove, be sure to consult your local tree care specialists. Especially in the case of old or beloved trees, the decision to remove can be difficult. Don’t risk your personal safety and that of others by attempting tree repair on your own. Cabling or bracing, while usually not recommended, may be an option. However, this process should only be performed by a professional arborist on very valuable trees, and will require annual inspection.
Don’t attempt to remove all of your living trees. The alternate side of trying to repair storm damaged trees yourself is seeing every tree as a threat. The value of trees to your property and home include aesthetic and environmental factors.
Wait for a professional crew to come and assess potential damage. Don’t be swayed by quick and cheap options.Your neighbor may offer to use his chainsaw to remove your hazardous limbs cheaply, but he may not have the tree care knowledge necessary to remove the dead limbs efficiently and with minimal damage to the tree and your yard. Wait for the professionals to arrive.
After a severe storm, many homeowners wonder what to do about storm damaged trees. Trees have an amazing ability to recover from storm damage. Hasty decisions can often result in removing trees that could have been saved.
Let the professional ISA certified arborists at Trimworks help you determine your game plan after a storm, give us a call at 727-289-1633.