Prepare Your Trees For Storm Season With A Trim

Depending on where you live, storm season could be right around the corner or it may already be upon you. Whether you are worried about summer thunderstorms, fall hurricanes, or winter snow, you need to take steps to protect your landscape trees from damage. Fortunately, a well-timed tree trimming can help prevent many of the storm damages that are common on trees.

Overgrown Branches

Overgrown branches can scrape against your house or become entangled in power lines. On a calm day, it may look like there is plenty of space between the tree and the structure, but when the wind picks up, the swaying trunk may cause the branches to scrape. Your trimming service can cut back these overgrown branches so they are no longer a danger.

Lopsided Canopies

Sometimes growth is thicker on one side of the tree's canopy. Not only does this look bad, but the poor weight distribution makes it more likely that the tree may blow down under the uneven weight. Uneven weight distribution also makes it more likely that the trunk will split in stormy weather. Your trimming service will thin out the fuller side of the tree, creating a more uniform and symmetrical canopy that will be much less prone to blowing over.

Heavy Crowns

An overly heavy crown is another danger that can lead to a tree coming down in a storm. Heavy crowns have dense canopies and shallow root systems. Your trimmer will need to thin out the crown to ensure the trunk and roots can support the weight even during high winds. Depending on the density of the crown, this process may take a couple of visits since your trimmer, in an effort to prevent shocking the tree, will likely remove no more than one-fourth of the crown's bulk in one pruning session.

Existing Damage

If there is existing damage, it needs to be addressed before storm season. This means removing dead or broken branches by cutting them back to where they emerge from the trunk or a larger branch. If there is trunk damage, such as the beginning of a split, your tree service may need to strap or bolt the trunk together to reinforce it and prevent the split from worsening. Weak growth, such as crossed and rubbing branches or branches growing at weak angles, must also be removed since these are the branches most likely to break off during a storm. 

Contact a tree trimming service immediately to have your problem trees pruned.

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