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Why trimming a tree is not the same as getting your hair cut

November 19, 2024

If you get a bad hair cut all that you have to do is wait until it all grows again and start over with a perfect head of hair. The same is not true with trimming a tree!


A tree is nature’s perfect solar collection system. The leaves are like solar panels that convert sunlight and carbon dioxide to sugars and starches that provide the energy to power up the tree. When trimming we should always leave enough leafy growth on the tree so that there is sufficient sap flow to heal the punning cuts. The sap flow out of the cuts will chemically change into a decay resistant compound that allows the tree to compartmentalize the wound and form a coating to completely stop rot from reaching the core of the tree.


It is generally not a good idea to remove more than twenty-five percent of the leafy growth of a tree at one time. However my customers generally cannot afford to have yearly maintenance done on their trees. They want as much done as possible when we are there working. Understandable.


Because sunlight is vital for sugar production, it is true that inside branches that are shaded from the sun are not contributing that much to sugar production. It is always better to thin out a tree from top the bottom and selectively remove a few large limbs hanging over the home than just hacking of all the branches nearest to the home.


To stop mold or damp conditions involving the home this top to bottom thinning and selective large limb cutting will allow much more leafy growth to be removed from the tree than the close to the house hack method, and will allow much more sunlight just to pass through the tree and is always your best option to protect your home and preserve the beauty and health of your trees.


There are many other elements that affect how a tree responds to trimming, such as excessive sunlight exposure to punning cuts that will cause sucker growth at the cut or prevent a proper healing of the wound.


Any tree will be healthier with several lighter trimmings rather than one heavy one. A heavy trim can cause what is referred to as a witch’s broom on a cut off stub and cause sucker growth all over the tree to manifest. If a terminal end is not left on the branch the sap flow out to the cut off stub will also cause witches brooms.


This is the reason that we don’t top trees. 


Once this witch broom condition is caused nothing can be done to reverse it. The tree will have a bad look with jagged suckers sticking out all over.

When you get a hacked up and badly done haircut, get some one better next time and all will be fine. Get the same bad cut to your tree and that looks is yours forever.

A lawn sprinkler is spraying water on a lush green lawn.

Why regular watering on a new lawn can discourage crabgrass

November 19, 2024
Why regular watering on a new lawn can discourage crabgrass. Many people think that when the grass comes up and is a good cover …nice and green…that all appearances indicate the grass is done and on its way to being self-sufficient….needing not too much attention. The new grass looks just great and ready to go. The new grass can be two inches tall ...BUT...the root is immature to the extreme and often less than one quarter of an inch into the ground. One day of hot sun will dry that thin purchase that the root has grasped and kill the planted grass and the stage is now set for crab grass. People want to know how just watering the new grass helps to prevent crabgrass. The explanation is as follows.. The dense cover of new planted grass shades the bright sun out at the soil root level. Crabgrass thrives best in bright hot sun. New grass is wiped out in a single hot summer day without water. Crab grass loves hot dry soil and has an incredible root system that allows it to thrive once the planted grass is killed. Crabgrass roots are a marvel of nature and survival. Compared to the root of a planted rye or fescue (common lawn grasses) crabgrass roots with multiple root strands extend out two of three inches in the length of time that it takes a common lawn grass to grow a quarter of an inch of a single strand into the ground. Religious watering of your planted grass will discourage crabgrass from getting a foothold.  Today many people are working two jobs and don’t have time to water the lawn. If the lawn won’t be watered twice a day with a real sprinkler for at least twenty minutes or even longer… good planning for a very late even November planting will get a lawn established.
A tree stump is sitting on top of a lush green field.

The easy money grinding stumps

November 19, 2024
The easy money grinding stumps. Just back the machine up to that stump and grind on the exposed above grade part of the stump and you are done. There are many reasons why this surface grind is the big money maker. No rocks are going to break the carbide teeth, the small amount of chips generated are easy to clean up and this is fast money. The grinding area is much smaller and its ”good Enough” I have used many adjectives is describe this standard stump grinding. Volcano effect, cratering , table top four inches below the ground, grinding the hub of the wheel but leave the spokes, if I was the captain of the Titanic… there is more to that iceberg than you see on the surface, but the bottom line is an unworkable area. The persistent irritation of a problem lawn every year will make you realize that that cheap job was not the best value The easy money grinding stumps. Just back the machine up to that stump and grind on the exposed above grade part of the stump and you are done. There are many reasons why this surface grind is the big money maker. No rocks are going to break the carbide teeth, the small amount of chips generated are easy to clean up and this is fast money. How Stumpbuster removes a stump I do the stumps myself, pulverize the stumps better than one foot below grade when possible, and chase out the roots three times larger than the stump itself if space permits. I chase out the roots to achieve a perfect grade. The one foot below grade that I describe is not the raised grade at the stump root flare but is the grade of the yard level three feet from the stump. The industry standard stump grinding job is to grind the exposed part of the stump four inches below grade . This sort of job I have never done in twenty years unless they order it up special, During this process I hog out the dirt and smaller roots in front of the stump and fan out on both sides of the stump before grinding the hub of the stump itself. The spreading root flares when “roto- tilled “ is mostly dirt that I rake out the root debris and reclaim to fill in the hole later.
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