Fungal Disease Spring Treatments

Written by Jasey Kelly and published on https://homeguides.sfgate.com/.

There’s nothing worse than watching a healthy tree gradually succumb to disease, only to become a safety hazard. Thankfully, properly timed treatment can prevent the production, growth, and spread of the spores that cause tree diseases. Tree disease protection begins with a comprehensive inspection of your landscape by one of our ISA certified arborists. During this inspection, your arborist will determine the overall health of the landscape and recommend disease or other treatments that can improve your tree’s condition while preserving the vitality of your property. Often troublesome and sometimes deadly, tree fungus complicates the life of many gardeners and arborists. Tree fungus can be managed in order to save the tree. Armed with some common gardening tools, a little fungicide and a good schedule of maintenance, any gardener can keep tree fungus at bay.

How to Treat Fungus on a Tree

Fungal diseases account for many of the problems with deciduous trees. In many cases, proper cultural practices will prevent and sometimes even treat outbreaks of certain fungi. Fungicides will help control others, and still one fungal disease in particular, verticillium wilt, is untreatable. Knowing the tree and the fungi is the first step in dealing with the problem.

1. Identify the type of fungi infesting the tree. If you cannot identify it, send a sample to your local extension office for identification. Cankers often appear as darkened areas of bark sometimes sunken in. Verticillium wilt symptoms include early discoloring of leaves or whole branches dying with brown, wilted leaves attached.

2. Thin out the branches of the crown to allow more air circulation within the tree in late winter or early spring with loppers, a pruning saw or chainsaw depending on branch size. When thinning, cut branches back to the main trunk or to a joining branch. This helps prevent and control fungi such as leafspot and powdery mildew, two common fungal diseases.

3. Apply fungicides to the tree at specific times for the specific fungi. Fungicide labels include instructions for various types of fungal diseases. In most cases, an application every seven days is recommended until the problem is taken care of.

4. Destroy leaves infected with powdery mildew or leafspot to prevent the fungi from spreading.

5. Cut out any branches infected with fungal cankers such as hypoxylon, phomopsis or cytospora canker, at least 4 to 6 inches below the canker infection during dry periods or late winter.

6. Fertilize the tree in the early spring, and water as needed. Healthy trees are less prone to fungal and other diseases.

 

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Dormant Season Structural Pruning: Its Benefit

Written by Landscape Hub and published on https://www.landscapehub.com/.

This is just one of the few misconceptions around the best time to prune your trees. You’re enjoying the benefits of your property during the spring and summer when growth is active, and more likely to notice any unsightly appearances caused by new spring growth. This often becomes a nuisance to homeowners. Clients also assume that trimming can’t be completed during the winter due to safety concerns of snow and ice. Arborists actually have optimal access when trees are dormant. Limbs are lighter and easier to handle, and leafless tree structures are easier to see.

Benefits of Dormant Pruning for You and Your Client

Now that the leaves are falling, and temperatures are dropping, that doesn’t mean that landscaping for the year is over. From November through mid-March, plants in the midwest zones are in their dormancy period. Sap is not flowing as fast, airborne fungal diseases are not as active, and insect activity is low.

Winter is actually the best time to prune, shape, and thin many deciduous plants, trees, and shrubs. Pruning cuts heal faster during dormancy, making this a low-risk time of year to make even large cuts. Best of all, pruning during this dormant season can yield fantastic results in spring.

Why Prune?

Pruning controls the size of a tree and encourages flowering and fruiting. Pruning also keeps unwieldy or overgrown trees and shrubs healthy. Removing certain types of growth before problems arise is key, and we’ll outline those risk factors below.

For Better Development

For younger trees, proper pruning helps the tree develop a robust structure and eye-catching form. If a tree gets appropriate structural pruning when it’s young, you are less likely to end up with an overgrown tree that will need difficult, corrective fixes later.

For Safety

When there are diseased, broken, crossed, or dead branches on your trees, preventative pruning helps ensure that these branches don’t cause injury or property damage, as they tend to break off on their own, or fall under the weight of ice and snow. Crossed branches rub together and create wounds that invite infection and boring insects, which can affect the entire tree systemically, leading to loss of vitality or even death.

To Promote Growth

When you prune a tree or shrub properly, you promote healthy new growth. Pruning is also a good way to cut back fast-growing shoots, suckers, or water sprouts, which are not only unsightly, but also weak and more likely to break as they grow.

Just be careful not to overdo it. We recommend removing no more than 1/4 of a plant in a season. Stress caused by over-pruning can actually result in more suckers and water sprouts as the tree attempts to rebound.

For Air Circulation

When plants have proper air circulation it helps them remain disease free. To do this, you’ll need to thin out the branches that make up the dense mass of the plant. Without this thinning, the chance for insect damage and disease are much greater. Again, be conscientious: take a step back every few snips to see what you’ve done. Pruning too much can hollow out the plant’s center.

For a Better View

Often tree branches can get in the way of your view from your deck or windows. Vista pruning during this dormant season allows you to carefully remove the right branches to expand the view without causing harm to the tree. This ensures you keep a natural look.

Common Pruning Mistakes

Pruning is a bit of an art form and can be tricky. If you make mistakes, trees and shrubs may suffer damage. Here are some additional tips focusing on what not to do.

Don’t Snip the Tips

Snipping a little at the tips is more harmful than a making larger cuts. Pruning stimulates plant growth, so if you snip the tip of one branch, four to six new branches will take its place. Snipping those tips off will continue the cycle until you have a plant with too many branches.

“Topping”

Unless you are attempting a radical pruning technique like pollarding, you don’t want to just shear the top of a shrub. This pruning mistake is referred to as “topping.” Topping creates a new arrangement of shoots that could make the shrub unmanageable. Instead, follow the natural lines of the plant while pruning.

Leaving A Stub

Always prune back to a bud or branch instead of leaving a stub. Stubs encourage horizontal sucker growth and disease. You’ll want to prune above a bud. This will cause a new branch to grow from the bud.

Skipping Pruning During the Winter

Not pruning is perhaps the most common pruning error. Your clients need to be educated on dormant pruning, so they have healthier plants when spring comes around.

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Written by Healthy Trees and published on https://www.healthytrees.com/.

Recently in this space, we discussed the major importance of tree care during the fall season. This transitional period between the summer and winter is vital for everything from tree nutrients to trunk, branch and leaf quality considerations, plus for providing the kinds of protections that allow the trees on your property to stay free of pests and disease during the cold winter ahead. Have you ever had a bacterial infection that was so severe your doctor bypassed pills altogether and jumped straight to the injectable antibiotics treatment? Come to think of it, those injections are typically delivered right in your trunk…or bottom, if you prefer.

Why Fall Trunk Injections Are Important

While tree care varies on the time of year, there is no bad time to start considering tree injections. Trunk injections introduce fertilizers and insecticides directly into the xylem of a tree using capsules. This presents an advantage because they ensure the tree is getting 100% of the materials they need without run off or leaching and the protection they deserve. When it comes to staying on top of tree disease and tree pests, fall tree injections is a must-take precaution.

Fertilization

Though an injection process can begin anytime throughout the year, the ideal period for treatment is during the fall months. Trees require less nutrients in the winter because they’re mostly dormant. Injecting during fall will allow the tree to use some of the nutrients to improve and grow roots during the harsh winter weather as protection and store the rest until the spring season. Once the weather changes, the tree will use the stored nutrients to kick-start development.

Winter Pests

Winter pests, such as the emerald ash borer larva and the winter moth, typically are active during the winter months. Severe defoliation and damage under the bark can be caused by these pests. Significant damage can lead to the death of your trees. Injecting insecticides in fall helps your tree fight off pests during the season your tree is most susceptible to damage. Limiting infestations will enable your trees to develop healthy during the spring season.

Wisconsin Fall Injection Services with Wachtel Tree Science

With fall just around the corner, our certified team of arborists will be performing trunk injections throughout Southeastern Wisconsin. Our injections will not only keep your trees safe over the winter but will help your trees get the nutrients they need for early growth in spring. Get info on our fall trunk injections or contact us today to schedule your service!

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The Best Time for Tree and Stump Removal

Written by Stump Grinding OKC and published on https://www.clearviewoutdoors.com/.

At the point when you contact a tree administration to talk about stump evacuation, your tree organization may suggest stump crushing. Stump pounding permits your tree organization to play out a protected, effective, and complete tree stump expulsion with the goal that you can utilize the region where the tree used to be for an alternate reason. Here is a glance at the motivation behind stump processors and the general stump granulating process during a tree stump expulsion.

Know the Best Time for Stump Grinding

Clear View Tree Services exhausts all prospective alternatives before going for tree removal. Sometimes, however, the only choice for a tree that has died is to remove it. The next issue to consider is when to remove a tree. Tree stumping can be done at any time, however, the best time for removal is in winter. Here’s why winter’s the perfect time for stump grinding in OKC:

Reason 1: During the winter, trees with declining or dead branches become more of a risk. Winter storms can produce as much as a foot of snow. When snow accumulates on trees, they get weighed down more and more. Because of the extra weight, tree structures that get feeble by decomposition or death have a high opportunity of falling off. Branches or trees can come down on top of valuables, such as cars, garages or even households, depending on your estate. Removing trees that are no longer alive protects other important aspects of your property.

Reason 2: Dead trees or stumps no longer grow. This can cause problems for surrounding crops as nutrients are not correctly spread throughout the hotter months. Removing dormant trees and stumps during winter not only guarantees adequate nutrition for surrounding crops, but also implies that they suffer less harm. When performed while the floor is frozen, the extraction method is considerably more efficient. Winter removal protects not only the adjacent crops, but also the soil and grass.

Reason 3: Sometimes fresh trees or shrubs can begin growing naturally around dead trees and stumps. The sooner a tree or stump is removed, the earlier the next steps can be taken to prepare the region for further planting. Removing tree roots from the soil, shaping the area’s building and even aerating planting seeds can prepare the area for spring development. If you don’t want to use the room for planting, maybe consider picking up some lawn ornaments! Prices are generally down owing to the off season.

Overall, stump grinding in OKC by Clear View Tree Services is best performed during the winter seasons. Our licensed arborists can visit your estate, assess the magnitude of the harm as well as the surroundings, and create a disposal plan particular to your requirements. Using the recent technology, Clear View Tree Services can securely and effectively remove almost any tree. For extra data on winter tree or stump grinding in OKC, visit our tree removal service or contact us directly to get began.

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Girdling Roots And What To Do About Them

Written by Healthy Trees and published on https://www.healthytrees.com/.

A tree is girdled when something is tightly wrapped around the trunk or stem. A stem girdling root circles or partially circles the base of a tree at or just below the soil surface. Stem girdling roots choke off the flow of water and nutrients between the roots and branches and food produced in the leaves from reaching the roots. They can also compress and weaken the trunk of a tree at or above the root collar flare (the junction between the trunk and the main roots) causing it to lean and lose its stability. Girdling roots may girdle other roots, but there is no known harm in this. Trees having stem girdling roots suffer a slow decline in health and a premature death.

What are Girdling Roots and How do They Effect Trees?

Girdling roots to a tree, is a similar experience to overeating while wearing a belt. When our favorite dish is placed directly in front of us, we cannot help but indulge. Upon indulging, we notice the space between our stomach and belt gradually decreases, resulting in a squeezing sensation. Lucky for us, we can release that tension by removing our belt.  Girdling roots require certified arborists assistance to remove this squeezing nuisance that, in turn, could be detrimental to the tree’s health.

Girdling roots are lateral roots that lie directly, or sometimes breach, the soil surface. These roots cut into one side of the trunk, restricting water and nutrient movement throughout the entire tree. While girdling roots generally take five to fifteen years to slowly weaken the tree, resulting in death, environmental factors, or disease paired with girdling roots can result in a much shorter lifespan.

What Causes Girdling Roots

The main causes of girdling roots come from an excessive placement of soil over the roots causing obstruction, nursery transplanting practices, and some factors not yet identified.

Compacted soil surrounding the roots initial planning hole results in difficulty growing outward. The soil forces the roots to circle at the bottom of the planning hole, risking the chance of girdling roots to occur.

Similarly, when a tree is not permitted to grow beyond its nursery container, its roots find other means to grow – circling at the bottom. During the planting process of the new tree, roots must be loosened to initiate outward growth, to combat against girdling.

Detecting Girdling Roots

Detecting girdling roots generally does not require an expert, unless you are a novice.

Similar to overeating and having our stomachs bulge, tree trunks flare upon feeling girdling roots. This abnormal flare occurs around where the trunk meets the ground and can result in the trunk appearing straight or even narrower.

As stated before, girdling roots may breach the soil line in an attempt to circle the trunk above but is not likely. You’re most likely to notice unseasonably small leaves, premature leaf falling, or a smaller canopy.

Treating and Preventing Girdling Roots

To prevent girdling roots, preemptive measures must be considered. When planting a tree, ensure the size of your planting hole accommodates the entirety of the tree and roots going into it. This means digging a hole two to three times the width of the root ball and a height no deeper than the root ball, so soil buildup above the root flare does not occur.

If circling roots within the nursery container occur, break them up prior to planting to ensure outward root growth. When continually watering the new tree, check up on the root flare for any abnormalities.

Finally, if you’ve determined girdling roots must be removed, as always, we recommend consulting a certified arborist. Certified arborists understand the weakening capabilities of girdling roots and the correct removal process to ensure the longevity of your tree.

Consider contacting one of our certified arborists at Wachtel to pinpoint your girdling roots or remove them to ensure the success of your tree.

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What to Do When Your Tree Is Dying

Written by Bob Villa and published on https://www.bobvila.com/.

Because trees are so important to our everyday life (from buildings to paper), it is not surprising that we have a stronger connection to trees than almost every other plant. While the death of a flower may go unnoticed, a dying tree is something we find to be alarming and sad. The sad fact is that if you look at a tree and are forced to ask yourself, “What does a dying tree look like?”, chances are that tree is dying.

7 Signs Your Tree is Dying—and How to Save It

A sick tree may be saved, but a dead tree can pose a risk your home and family. Look for these symptoms to determine the health of your tree.

Know the signs of a dying tree.

Trees are valuable assets to a landscape. Not only do they provide aesthetics, but these towering plants also offer shade and shelter for wildlife and other plants. Sometimes a dying tree is obvious, with its leaves turning brown in the summer or branches riddled with holes from wood-boring pests. But it’s not always clear when trees are in poor health, which can make it difficult to address especially when a dead or dying tree located near a building or home. Broken limbs from a dying tree can cause injuries to people and pets and have the potential to lead to costly repairs if it lands on your home or car. Keep an eye out for these seven signs that you may have a dying tree so you can take care of it before it does damage to your property.

1. The tree has brown and brittle bark or cracks.

As the tree is dying, the bark becomes loose and starts to fall off of a dying tree. The tree may also have vertical cracks or missing bark. “Check for deep splits in the bark that extend into the wood of the tree or internal or external cavities,” advises Matt Schaefer, the largest residential tree care company in North America and the first tree care company in the United States. Cracks often create weakness that can cause damage in storms or other weather events.

2. There are few healthy leaves left.

For deciduous trees, look for branches that lack lush green leaves and show only brown and brittle leaves during the growing season. They will also have dead leaves still clinging well into the winter instead of dropping to the ground. Coniferous evergreens will start to show red, brown or yellow needles or leaves when it’s stressed or dying.

3. The tree has an abundance of dead wood.

A couple of dead branches or dead wood doesn’t necessarily mean you have a dying tree. (Keeping a regular pruning schedule during the dormant season will keep your trees healthy and strong.) However, an increased prevalence of dead wood can indicate that it is a sick or dying tree. “Dead trees and branches can fall at any time,” Schaefer warns. This can potentially be a hazard to you and your home.

4. It’s a host to critters and fungus.

Pests such as bark beetles and carpenter ants live in trees that are under stress or are in the process of dying. These pests prefer to live in dead, weakened, or dying hosts. As for fungal or bacterial infections, look for cankers (discolored areas or depressed places on the bark) or mushrooms growing on the ground at the base of a tree or on the tree itself. These are indications of rot in the roots or trunk. “In time, decay will extend further within the tree leading to structural problems,” Schaefer says.

5. The tree shows signs of root damage.

Since roots run deep underground, determining damage isn’t always easily visible. If you’ve had recent excavation or construction projects near the tree, look out for any changes in the tree’s health since that time that might suggest the roots were damaged in the process. Likewise, if your tree has a shallow and/or partially exposed root system, pay attention to subtle changes that might suggest exposure to extreme elements and poor soil compaction have affected the vitality of the roots. Some signs of root damage include thinning foliage, poor yearly growth, yellow undersized leaves, dead branches, and wilted brown leaves during the growing season.

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How To Tell If A Tree Needs To Be Cut Down?

Written by House Logic and published on https://www.houselogic.com/.

If that large maple tree hanging over your patio doesn’t look so good, what should you do? Learn the signs that tell you it’s time to have it cut down. That large maple tree hanging over your patio doesn’t look so good. How can you tell whether you should hire a tree service to remove it?

Is Your Tree Going to Fall Over?

Sometimes a valuable tree uproots without warning; but most often, your tree sends distress signals before it topples.

A mature tree can account for as much as 10% of your assessed property value, depending on your market.  With that much at stake, you sure don’t want to have to yell, “Timber!”

Here’s how to tell if one of your trees is in danger of falling over, and what you can do about it.

How to Inspect Your Trees

No one knows your trees as well as you. So after they leaf out in the spring, leaf off in the fall, and after a big storm, walk around and look at your lovelies, top to bottom, noticing changes in foliage, branches, roots, and bark.

• Inspect all sides of the tree, both up close and from a distance.
• Check for cuts in or peeling bark.
• Use binoculars to inspect the tree’s crown for dead wood and brown leaves.

Leaning Trees

Trees usually don’t grow straight, and a little lean is normal. But when your tree starts looking like the Tower of Pisa because of poor weight distribution or anchor root damage, it’s likely unstable. This is a good time to call an arborist.

Danger signs:

• Cracked or heaving soil, especially on the side opposite the lean.
• Exposed roots around the base of the tree.

Cures:

• Prune branches to distribute weight better.
• Brace the tree trunk with cables attached to stakes on opposite sides of the tree. Make sure to pad the tree before placing cables around tender bark.

Multiple Trunks

A tree with multiple trunks, or with splits in one trunk, can be unstable.

Danger signs:

• V-shaped or U-shaped multiple trunks are weak points for mature trees. The connective wood where the trunks come together may lose strength — and be more likely to split — with age and when storms occur.
• Cracks that extend deeply into or through the trunk.

Cures:

• An arborist can stabilize split trunks by attaching cables between trunks and branches high in the tree. Cables won’t repair existing damage, but they will increase the safety, especially in strong winds, and extend the life of your tree.
• This is dangerous work best left to experts, who will charge between $600 and $2,000; annual cable maintenance costs $100-$200.

Construction Destruction

Construction is tough on trees. Installing a driveway, putting on an addition, and digging up utility lines puts nearby trees under stress. Construction can damage shallow feeder roots, starving and destabilizing the tree. Construction equipment can scrape tree bark, providing a gateway set for disease and infestation.

Danger signs of construction stress (which can show up immediately or years later):

• Damaged bark
• Reduced, smaller, or no foliage
• Premature autumn color
• Mushrooms, conks, and carpenter ants at the base of the tree are a sign of decay and rot.

Cures:

Prevention is your best option. Before construction, set up a barricade around the tree; for each inch in diameter of the tree’s trunk, add a foot of protection. For example, an 8-inch-diameter tree needs a barricade with an 8-foot radius.

If the tree is damaged by construction, act fast:

• Prune to reduce weight and remove damaged limbs.
• Install cables or bracing rods.
• Water deeply.
• Aerate compacted soil around the root zone.

An Arborist to the Rescue

If you think your trees are changing, or you see any of the major warning signs above, they could be “hazard trees” — trees likely to fall and destroy what’s near them — like your house.

This is a good time to call a certified arborist. Get recommendations from friends or neighborhood list serves. Or, contact the International Society of Arboriculture, which maintains a list of certified arborists.

An arborist can help save your tree, or let you know if it’s beyond help. For example, bacteria or bugs could be harming your tree, and an arborist’s inspection ($150-$350) can diagnose which disease, trauma, or fungus is the culprit. An arborist also can determine if your tree is decaying internally, something that may not yet be obvious.

Aborists can either fix the problem, or calculate the risk of the tree falling and the likely objects it could damage. That calculation will help you decide if it’s worth spending money to keep the tree alive and upright, remove the tree, or just let nature take its course and topple the tree at will.

What About Lightning Risks?

If you live on the highest hill in the neighborhood, and own the tallest tree on the block, that’s pretty sweet. But it also increases your chances of a lightning strike.

If lightning strikes one side of a tree, your tree might close the wound and live its life. But if a bolt travels through the trunk, exploding wood and bark and damaging roots, it might be lights out.

To protect trees from lightning, an arborist can ground a tree with a copper cable system that extends from near the top of major trunks down to copper ground rods. These systems can cost $1,500, and may not be worth the money to protect a tree you could replace for $150.

If you’re thinking of planting a tree, you might want to avoid one of these trees.

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Why Topping Is Bad For Trees?

Written by Gardening Know How and published on https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/.

Topping is the indiscriminate cutting of tree branches to stubs or to lateral branches that are not large enough to assume the terminal role. Other names for topping include “heading,” “tipping,” “hat-racking,” and “rounding over.” Topping is often used to reduce the size of a tree. A homeowner may feel that a tree has become too large for his or her property, or that tall trees may pose an unacceptable risk. Topping, however, is not a viable method of height reduction and certainly does not reduce future risk. In fact, topping will increase risk in the long term.

Tree Topping Information – Does Tree Topping Hurt Trees

Many people think that you can shorten a tree by cutting off the top. What they don’t realize is that topping permanently disfigures and damages the tree, and may even kill it. Once a tree is topped, it can be improved with the help of an arborist, but it can never be completely restored. Read on for tree topping information that can help you make better decisions about shortening trees. What is Tree Topping? Topping a tree is the removal of the top of the central stem of a tree, called the leader, as well as the upper main branches. They are usually sheared off at a uniform height. The result is an unsightly tree with thin, upright branches called water sprouts at the top. Topping a tree seriously affects its health and value in the landscape. Once a tree is topped, it is highly susceptible to disease, decay and insects. In addition, it reduces property values by 10 to 20 percent. Topped trees create a hazard in the landscape because the branch stubs decay and break. The water sprouts that grow at the top of the tree have weak, shallow anchors and are likely to break off in a storm.

Does Topping Hurt Trees?

Topping damages trees by:

• Removing much of the leaf surface area needed to produce food and the food storage reserves.
• Leaving large wounds that are slow to heal and become entry points for insects and disease organisms.
• Allowing strong sunlight to enter the central parts of the tree, resulting in sunscald, cracks and peeling bark.

Hat rack pruning is cutting off lateral branches at arbitrary lengths and damages trees in ways similar to topping. Utility companies often hat rack trees to keep them from interfering with overhead lines. Hat racking destroys the appearance of the tree and leaves stubs that will eventually decay.

How Not to Top Trees

Before you plant a tree, find out how large it will grow. Don’t plant trees that will grow too tall for their environment. Drop crotching is cutting back branches to another branch that can take over their function. Suitable branches are at least one-third to three-fourths the diameter of the branch you are cutting. If you find it necessary to shorten a tree but aren’t sure how to do it safely, call a certified arborist for help.

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How To Trim A Large Tree?

Written by Home Guides and published on https://homeguides.sfgate.com/.

If you’re trimming heavy tree limbs, you have to be extra careful not to damage the bark or interfere with the tree’s natural healing response. Doing it right is actually no more difficult than doing it wrong, particularly if you think ahead to how much work it would take to remove a dead tree!

How to Prune Large Trees

Large trees need little maintenance. If the tree has dead branches or limbs that are rubbing together, however, you should prune the affected wood. You can prune any time of the year, but it’s easier to do when the tree doesn’t have leaves. Avoid pruning in the spring right after the tree produces leaves, as the tree’s energy supplies are already depleted from the new growth and pruning puts additional stress on the tree. Make cuts on the limb side of the branch collar, which is the junction of the tree branch with the tree trunk.

1. Locate all dead branches with no leaves or any signs of buds when the tree is dormant; the wood is usually brittle, whereas live branches have some flexibility. Wearing safety eyewear and protective gloves, make a cut on the underside of the branch you are removing approximately 18 inches from the tree’s trunk, using a pruning saw. If the branch is larger than 4 inches thick, use a chainsaw.

2. Create a second cut slightly farther out on the branch from the first cut. This time cut through the branch from above. Finish cutting the branch by making a clean cut just outside the swollen bump of the tree’s collar.

3. Examine joints on branches to help determine which live branches to thin. Limbs with U-shaped formations on the branches are healthy and should remain on the tree; remove limbs with V-shaped branches along them. Locate all branches that rub or cross other branches. Prune them back to the nearest healthy U-shaped union.

4. Raise the crown of the tree by pruning lower branches. Cut away branches that make it hard for you to walk under the tree or get under it with the lawn mower. As you raise the crown, keep two-thirds of the entire tree as crown and one-third as trunk.

5. Cover the fresh cuts on the trunks of elm and oak trees with non-toxic wound dressing if you prune those trees during the growing season. Otherwise, let the tree heal its wounds naturally.

6. Clean your saws with disinfectant after you prune each tree to help prevent the spread of disease from one tree to another. Mix one part bleach to nine parts water. Rub that mixture on the saw blades and let it set for a couple minutes. Follow that with a mixture of dish detergent and water. Rinse the blades well with clear water and dry them completely.

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How Much Does It Cost To Cut Down A Tree In Australia?

Written by Service Seeking Staff and published on https://www.serviceseeking.com.au/.

Caring for the shrubs and trees is not just important to beautify your property, but it is also a matter of safety. However, there are several valid reasons to cut down a tree. May be it could be diseased, damaged or infected. Whatever the reason, removing a tree yourself can be dangerous, and it is important to hire a professional company. However, before you hire someone for tree removal, you should know the average cost associated with it. Typically, the cost of removing a tree in Melbourne varies based on different factors, including the size of the tree, its condition and the intricacy of the job.

How Much Does It Cost To Cut Down A Tree (tree lopping)?

The average cost of tree lopping services is $120/hr. However, the amount tree loppers charge for the job can still change. Because of certain factors such as the height of the tree and the size of the work, tree lopping prices can range from $50/hr to $150/hr.

Where do these prices come from?

Factors that affect the cost of tree lopping

Businesses that offer tree lopping services consider different things when computing for the final cost; after all, various factors can affect a job’s level of difficulty. Here are some pricing determinants that you should be aware of.

Height of the tree
The taller the tree, the higher the cost of the job will be. This is because businesses will need more time and equipment to access branches that are higher up.

Condition
Tree lopping businesses take the health of the tree into consideration too. If you don’t know how to tell if your trees are healthy, don’t worry. Arborists can inspect them for you.

Accessibility
If businesses will have a hard time getting all their equipment to the area where the tree is, then you can expect the price to increase. Easy access jobs are generally more affordable.

Your location
Businesses also factor in travel expenses. To minimize this, opt to hire a local business.

Tree lopping prices per state

Among the most affordable places for tree lopping work is New South Wales where the cost of hiring a tree lopper is $110/hr on average. This is slightly lower than the rate in Queensland, which is approximately $120/hr.

The prices of tree lopping services in Western Australia and Victoria don’t differ much as well. In Western Australia, you can have a tree lopped for an average price of $145/hr. Meanwhile, in Victoria, tree lopping jobs are priced at around $150/hr.

To ensure quality and safety, it’s always best to hire a reliable business to handle any tree work.

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