Making Trees Smile

Make your tree smile

Caring for trees is different than other plants. Its not like your garden where you get a quick, rewarding return based off some hard work. Its not like your lawn where you water, fertilize here and there, and then just mow it. And caring for trees is nothing like caring for perennials or flower gardens. Caring for trees takes patience, a understanding of how trees function (nothing major, just a few tips), and the vision to understand the benefits you get from trees, even though you don’t always necessarily get to experience them first hand like fresh peas from the garden.

Ok, so you do get those things from apple and other fruit trees, but I’m talking about the trees that are in our landscapes that shade our homes, cool our neighborhoods with moisture and shade, give us places to sit and enjoy the outdoors, and shelter us from wind.

Here are some fun facts about trees…

They actually make our towns and yards cooler in the summer. Not only from the shade, but from the moister they loose in their leaves.

Trees reduce crime! Studies have shown that communities with mature trees actually have lower crime rates than those areas that have no trees at all.

There are many more benefits and if you want to learn more go to www.treesaregood.org.  This is a site provided by the International Society of Arboriculture to provide all kinds of information about trees and arborists.

So back to the topic of making trees smile. First the patience you need to care for trees. It takes a long time for a tree to react to its environment and anything else that happens to it. A tree that is sick now, probably was predisposed to a stressor a few years ago. That is why trees don’t die right away after construction, but 5-10 years later. Construction damage to trees is the #1 cause of early tree death. So in that sense, be careful what you prune or what you do to your tree, think about what its going to do long term. Because, you could cut of that branch now and the tree may look fine for years, but the damage has already been done and when the tree does look sick, it will be too late.

What about understanding how trees function. I already covered a big part of that when talking about patience. But there is more. Be aware that 90% of all the trees roots are within the top foot of the soil. The common misconception is that tree roots go deep to get water and to anchor themselves. When actually the roots that are competing for water and nutrients are right at the top fighting with the grass and other plants. Sure tree roots go down, but this are the big ones to anchor the tree and they do not absorb water and nutrients and there are only a few. Also, most tree roots grow outward away from the trunk of the tree about as far as the tree is tall. The trees root system is its life line to health and vitality. If you take care of the root system, the tree will do leaps and bounds better. One last thing about tree roots and understanding how trees function. Tree roots need oxygen to survive. It is only the leaves that use carbon dioxide and give off oxygen when photosynthesizing. So its important that the soil your trees is growing in is loose, full of organic matter, and that water doesn’t pool and drown the roots.

Finally, the vision of knowing what your trees give you. I already mentioned some of the benefits trees give you, but there is so much more. The next time your out in your yard, think of what it would look and feel like if your yard and community was void of trees. Think of how uncomfortable it would be. How HOT it would be. How much more your heating and cooling bills would be for your home. I bet it wouldn’t take long to really start to value what you have.

So to make your trees happy, be thoughtful about how you treat it. Think about what you do to your yard affects your tree. Think twice about pruning branches, nailing things to the trunk, or removing a tree because its “messy” (common how messy is it really!). I feel tree sometimes get a bad wrap because the ones that are not cared for can become a real problem or dangerous. But caring for trees does not have to be expensive, in fact doing the small things early in a trees life actually makes pruning and care for mature trees less expensive. As an arborist, I would much rather work on trees that were cared for when young, rather than coming in late and trying to “fix” problems. Its easier for me, better for the tree, and less I have to charge for the work.

Plant a tree, take care of it, and it will take care of your family or someone for generations.

Thank you,

Sam Kezar

ISA Board Certified Master Arborist