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7-Steps To Follow When Inspecting For Tree Decay

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– The following steps were taken from an article by John Fech in the November 2012 issue of Tree Services Magazine

By itself, tree decay can be a major concern, especially if found in a soft-wooded tree species such as your silver maple or poplar. Fortunately, some species are quite resistant and if other stressors aren’t present in a significant capacity, it may not be as worrisome as other problems such as poor location, planting errors, over fertilization or drought. A step-by-step approach works best when inspecting trees for decay: Read More

Turf and Tree Wars*

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* Shared from Tree Services Magazine article by Sharon Lilly from 1/1/13

There may be a battle brewing on your property between your trees grass. Trees and turf tend to be mutually exclusive in nature; you don’t see many trees growing in the prairies or grasslands as you may have noticed that grass is not common on the forest floor.

Our urban landscapes represent an unnatural ecosystem in which we force two somewhat incompatible plant types together and expect optimum performance from each. Trees and turf compete for sunlight, water, mineral nutrients and growing space below ground. Turf roots typically outcompete tree roots and win the belowground battle. However, the dense shade of a tree’s crown can be too much competition for turf, and trees win the aerial war. Read More

Arborist Advice: Preparing Your Landscape for Winter

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One of the best things you can do to ensure a beautiful, healthy and thriving spring landscape is to properly put your yard and plants to bed before the harsh weather arrives.

Whether you’re mourning summer’s end or unpacking your winter boots in anticipation of cooler days, these tips will help you prioritize what needs to be done before the snow flies. Read More

One Tree That Look Like An Entire Forest – The Quaking Aspen

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Think of a tree and what comes to mind probably has some leaves, some roots, and a trunk. The Quaking Aspen regularly reproduces via a process called suckering. An individual stem can send out lateral roots that, under the right conditions, send up other erect stems; from all above-ground appearances the new stems look just like individual trees. The process is repeated until a whole stand, of what appear to be individual trees, forms. This collection of multiple stems, called ramets, all form one, single, genetic individual, usually termed a clone. Read More

Fall Foliage Report for Maryland: November 4-5

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In November we’re starting to think of oyster dressing, pumpkin pie and turkey dinners, despite the fairly mild temperatures and presence of still-green leaves on many Maryland trees. While the leaves are past peak and have even started to drop in western Maryland, the brilliant orange, scarlet and yellow foliage is coming on strong in central Maryland and the mid-Eastern Shore. Read More

Tough Locations for Trees

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Even after a tree is selected and installed based on the site conditions of sun, shade, soil drainage, proximity to other trees and shrubs, nutrient availability, desired size, slope, surroundings, adjacent activity and more, it can fail to thrive.

Sometimes that’s because the tree wasn’t chosen well and sometimes it’s because it wasn’t planted well. But even more critical to the tree’s success is where it was planted. A tree’s proper location usually will determine whether it becomes an asset or detriment to the landscape. Read More

Anatomy of a Tree

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A diagram showing the inner layers of a treeThe Inside Story

  1. The outer bark is the tree’s protection from the outside world. Continually renewed from within, it helps keep out moisture in the rain, and prevents the tree from losing moisture when the air is dry. It insulates against cold and heat and wards off insect enemies.
  2. The inner bark, or “phloem”, is pipeline through which food is passed to the rest of the tree. It lives for only a short time, then dies and turns to cork to become part of the protective outer bark.
  3. The cambium cell layer is the growing part of the trunk. It annually produces new bark and new wood in response to hormones that pass down through the phloem with food from the leaves. These hormones, called “auxins”, stimulate growth in cells. Auxins are produced by leaf buds at the ends of branches as soon as they start growing in spring.
  4. Sapwood is the tree’s pipeline for water moving up to the leaves. Sapwood is new wood. As newer rings of sapwood are laid down, inner cells lose their vitality and turn to heartwood.
  5. Heartwood is the central, supporting pillar of the tree. Although dead, it will not decay or lose strength while the outer layers are intact. A composite of hollow, needlelike cellulose fibers bound together by a chemical glue called lignin, it is in many ways as strong as steel. A piece 12″ long and 1″ by 2″ in cross section set vertically can support a weight of twenty tons!

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Bacterial Tree Ooze: How To Identify

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Slime spotted on trees is known as bacterial ooze. There are different types of bacterial ooze, and they’re not very well studied. Bacterial ooze can easily go unnoticed. At its most basic they form when a tree gets damaged and subsequently infected with bacteria. In certain circumstances if the bacteria is able to feed on the tree sap and nothing prevents it from multiplying it will eventually form this slime. Read More