With the coming of fall it is important to remember to prepare your trees for our moderate southeastern Washington winter. This list will serve as a reminder of the most important points to consider for fall tree care, tree pruning, and proper tree winterization.
- Water your trees weekly in late fall until freeze-up. Two gallons per inch of stem diameter is recommended, if the soil is dry at a depth of six inches. This will help prevent winter dieback.
- Rake up and remove/destroy fallen leaves. This is the best thing you can do to reduce the amount of fungal leaf disease next year (many fungal leaf diseases overwinter on leaf litter).
- Prune dead wood to decrease overwintering sites for tree diseases and insect pests.
- Wait until the tree is dormant (at least November) to prune living branches, always using proper technique.
- Wrap the lower main stem of trees that have not developed thick bark to protect them from sun scald and rodent feeding damage.
- Wrap burlap around smaller, high-value (landscape) conifers or set up a burlap sun/wind shield to help minimize the chances of winter burn.
- Throughout winter, use caution when applying ice melt products near trees and shrubs. Salts and other chemicals contained in some products may cause harm.
By completing this list you will be doing your part to maximize the chances that your trees will make it through the winter in good health and will be ready for a productive growing season.
Now, if you do not feel comfortable or simply don’t have the proper tools to do any tree maintenance, we are more than happy to do any of this work for you. We can handle all of your tree maintenance needs and services. We look forward to being your preferred tree maintenance provider.