Tag Archives: caring for trees

Evergreen Tree Care

Evergreen trees are not only a beautiful addition to your Westchester residence, they can provide year-round privacy if strategically planted as well! We’re going to review basic evergreen tree care as well as discuss the benefits of this beautiful conifer.

These beautiful evergreens have been around for a while!

Selecting the Perfect Evergreen Tree

Choosing the perfect evergreen tree for your home begins with a healthy root system. Because the root system is the tree’s main source for collecting and dispersing nutrients and water to the tree, it is vital to have a healthy root system.

Growth Rate

Evergreen Tree Growth Example Westchester Tree Life

An example of one evergreen’s growth rate

Once planted, a healthy evergreen tree can grow anywhere from 8-16 inches per year, though your evergreen tree may grow less the first year. During the first year, your evergreen is establishing it’s root system into the newly introduced ground. If you selected a healthy evergreen tree, your tree will have a healthy growth rate.

Protecting Your Evergreen

Westchester county’s tree care experts are here to keep your evergreens safe and healthy!

When food is scarce, deer, moles, and mice will eat any vegetation they can find, including your evergreen’s new growth. Moles and mice attack from underground, eating the root system of your tree. To protect your trees against deer, call Westchester Tree Life! We can assess your trees and landscape and provide solutions to keep your trees healthy.

Make sure your evergreen trees are ready to take on winter 2015 with the help of Westchester Tree Life! Call (914) 238-0069 to make an appointment with a tree care professional today.

Trees and Deer Damage in Westchester

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Deer damage in Westchester is not unheard of due to the high population in the area. Westchester Tree Life’s tree care professionals are here to assist you in assessing the damage to your trees and providing a custom plant health care plan moving forward. If you need immediate tree care, call Westchester Tree Life today: (914) 238-0069

These seemingly innocuous visitors are more harmful than you may think!

Rutting Season

From early September throughout November, deer rub their antlers on trees to shed their summer velvet, mark their scent to attract doe (female deer) and claim their perimeter; this season is referred to as rutting season. During the rutting season (also known as the mating season for deer), you may notice bark stripped from the perimeter of your tree. Westchester County is known for having a high deer population and deer often revisit the same place each year to claim their territory; each rutting process lasts approximately 24 hours.

Trees in Danger of Deer Damage

Maple, Magnolia, Birch, and Bald Cypress trees are especially susceptible to deer damage, and can quickly be reduced to stubs. Deer damage is especially stressful to young trees with smooth bark. Deer damage to your trees can impact your landscape as well as decrease your property value.

Identifying Factors of Deer Damage to Trees

When identifying deer damage to trees, look for a shredding of bark ranging from one foot above the ground to three or four feet high; underlying wood will be exposed. When a deer has damaged the entire circumference of a tree, the tree is said to be “girdled”. Trees which are girdled often die due to the inability to transport water and nutrients. Trees which have experienced vertical damage often survive, though the growth on that side may be stunted. Due to the high rate of deer in Westchester, it is advised to check your trees often.

Deer Browsing

Deer also damage trees by browsing on tree seedlings, tree shrubs and climbers from late fall to early spring. This reduces stem densities, limits height growth and reduces foliage density, which makes for a more open understorey.

Never Move Firewood

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As winter approaches, so does the season for bonfires and warming up with indoor fireplaces. This time of year, it is important for us to stress that you never move firewood. What are the effects of moving firewood? How can this be damaging to your surrounding trees and wildlife? We will answer all of those questions and more in this concise mini-article.

Image Courtesy of www.lenexa.com

The “Never Move Firewood” rule began as a result of the damaging effects brought on by the Emerald Ash Borer beetle, or the EAB. The EAB is an invasive bug, small enough to fit on the head of a penny, and difficult to track and detect in nature. When you move firewood, you are transporting the EAB beetle, therefore spreading it in new regions, ultimately endangering more trees.

The larvae of the EAB beetle tunnels under the bark of the tree, disrupting the tree’s system of transporting food and water; this starves and eventually kills the tree. Tens of millions of trees have died due to the effects of the EAB beetle, which can now be found in various states, such as New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and many more.

To prevent the transfer of the EAB beetle and further damage to our trees, we ask that you burn local firewood, versus purchasing wood which has been transported from another area. Another great way to prevent the transfer of this invasive insect, is to purchase kiln-dried firewood!

Stay tuned for more seasonal tips regarding the health of your trees!