St. Augustine Tree Care For The Hurricane Season

Protect your St Agustine Properties by trimming your trees. Oak trees can live 200 years or more. The largest certified Oak tree of record is one named “The Seven Sisters Oak” in Lewisburg, Louisiana. It measures 37 feet and 2 inches in circumference with a crown spread of 150 feet. It is estimated that it is more than 1000 years old!  So how do we take care of a jewell like that, one that will some day be a Grand Oak like many in the St Austine area? The most important maintenance activity is proper pruning. Society thinks that cutting back the tree heavily before the storm comes will take care of the problem or cutting back large limbs over the house will solve the problem or cutting out all the growth in the interior foilage will cut back on wind resistance (lions-tailing) or even topping the tree will help. All this is just giving the  St Augustine homeowner a false sense of security. They sleep better knowing they have done all that work on the tree. Well they might be able to sleep better but the problems still exist. A storm is a storm. The wind will keep blowing and the ground will get wetter and wetter and it will only take so much moisture. How many of us stood at the window watching the winds blow and the limbs break and the trees blow over?

 So what can we as St Augustine home & bussiness owners do to prepare to curb the loss to our valuable trees in the landscape and damage to our properties? First evaluate the situation yourself. Walk the entire yard and check out every tree. Are there any limbs rubbing on the home? Are there any trees too close the eves of your home? Has the power company had the limbs cleared away from the transformers and powerlines. One small limb can blow out the power and you could be down for hours or even days before the power company could get to you. The power companies do want your input to know what preventative maintenance they need to do to prepare for the storm. Check out the trees of your neighbor next door. Do they impose a possible danger to your property. You are responsible for your own repairs if your neighbors tree falls on your property unless you notify them formally of a possible problem with their tree. Tree Law will be another chapter we can discuss later. Work with your neighbor. Second, pick a reputable company to do the trimming or removal for you, preferably a company that has been in business a long time or that has a Certified Arborist on staff. Correct pruning can save you a lot of heartache in the long run. How a tree is pruned can make a lot of difference in how the tree will react to stress from storms as well as what mother-nature does to it with wet and dry seasons. Trees usually do not react quickly to problems. Sometimes it takes several years to show damage, sometimes over night as with a lightning strike. Third, call before the last minute. Homeowners should prepare now. Tree companies do not need the stress of last minute calls. Tree work is too dangerous to rush. Plan ahead. If you are not sure what needs to be done, ask the tree companies their professional opinion. Also remember Hillsborough County and most other Municipalities require a permit to take down trees. That requires sometimes two weeks for them to come out and look at the tree. Do it right, legally, and with a permit. Check out the Tree Ordinance in your community. Some require a permit just for trimming. Plan now, plan how and lets be ready for a storm to come  to St Augustine as early as next week.

 From the Landscape Doctor –  St Augustine- Hurricane Ready our homes & yards June 18, 2011