You change your oil regularly at 3,000-5,000 thousand miles. You change your furnace and air filter every six months. You put new batteries in your smoke detectors each time change. You have your teeth cleaned and checked every six months. You keep up on maintenance just like any good homeowner should, but do you ever feel like there is one area you just might be forgetting? Walk outside your front door and take a look up. When is the last time you had your trees assessed? Your trees may be in need of maintenance too.
Beautiful, healthy trees require maintenance and proper care. Poorly maintained trees can create hazards for your home and family and can die out too early in their life not to mention cost you more money in the long run. It’s important to have your trees inspected each year and have professionals discuss with you what they are seeing and what tree service can prolong your tree’s life and keep your home safe.
The easiest thing you can do is check your trees yourself. Often time sick or damaged trees will have visible signs – discoloration of wood or leaves, cracks in the bark, fungal growth, or a lot of dead branches that you will recognize quickly as a problem. With most problems, a quick Google search will help to determine what is wrong and how to fix it. At that point, it is probably best to call in a professional to help make your tree healthy again.
Beyond taking a look at your trees quarterly and assessing for issues, at Jackson Tree Service we recommend regular maintenance of your trees through pruning, deadwooding, or both.
Pruning/Tree Trimming – Pruning a tree means trimming overgrown branches. Proper pruning keeps a tree in a strong, sturdy shape and allows for good aesthetics. This is also how you keep your tree away from your home, power lines, and other important structures.
Deadwooding – Deadwooding is the process of trimming dead wood from within a tree’s canopy. Dead wood in trees is one of the most prevalent causes of falling branches. There are a number of reasons dead limbs can be in your tree – pests like oak galls, insufficient nutrients, or just a general shedding of the old as a tree grows. When this happens, the branches are at risk for falling in a heavy St. Louis thunderstorm or snowstorm and can damage property and possibly even injure you or your family
While keeping up with your trees may be a chore, financially and otherwise, it is important to remember how much your trees are worth. Not only are your trees beautiful to look at, they also add property value, needed shade during hot St. Louis summers, and most importantly, they make the oxygen we need.
So go ahead and take a walk outside or give us a call at Jackson Tree Service. We will be happy to come by and give you a free assessment of your trees.