Caring For Your Trees

Plant a tree and nature will take care of the rest, right? Not necessarily. The trees in our yards, neighborhoods, and along our streets are a valuable asset, and require our help to keep them healthy. Proper tree care is based on science and research, not wives tales and myths. There is a “right way” and a “wrong way” to care for trees. Here are some tips you need to know to keep your trees healthy and working for you.

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When Does a Tree Become a Risk?

Most trees in our landscapes are quite safe and pose no threat. However, some trees can become dangerous due to serious structural defects. Recognizing these defects is often difficult for the untrained eye. Trees can appear perfectly healthy and green, yet pose a threat to people and property because of defects such as dead branches, cracks, weak branch unions, internal decay, cankers, root problems, or just poor form. Learning to examine and evaluate our trees and the severity of their defects can lead to corrective action that will reduce the likelihood of the tree falling and injuring someone.

How to Recognize a Hazardous Tree - an informative publication from the USDA Forest Service
http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/howtos/ht_haz/ht_haz.htm

Tree Diseases that Create Hazards - a Penn State Fact Sheet
http://www.ppath.cas.psu.edu/EXTENSION/PLANT_DISEASE/hazardtr.html

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