What to Do in Your Yard AFTER the Storm

   The day after a major rain and wind storm is not necessarily the best day for the backyard gardener to tackle the hazardous task of cleaning up the remnants of trees, shrubs and other plants that took a beating. If wind and rain is still in the forecast, the prevalence of slippery conditions and the chance of more falling debris should limit your cleaning chores to dragging broken branches away from the scene of the crime. It is not a good day to be climbing ladders or scrambling into trees while balancing a chain saw. Leave that to the professionals.

     Sacramento-based arborist Analisa Stewart of Arbor Entities offers this good piece of advice for those surveying the fallen aftermath of a major storm: "Limb failure is largely a product of poor tree maintenance over time," says Stewart. "Take care of your trees, or they may take care of themselves in ways you won't appreciate."

     According to the University of California publication, "Inspect Your Landscape Trees for Hazards", a nice day in autumn (or winter, spring or summer, for that matter) is the time to take an inventory of any possible future tree damage before you, your house or your car becomes the next victim of a falling tree or branch.

Leaning Trees: Are your trees not as upright as the result of recent heavy winds? Can you see newly upheaved roots or soil around those trees? Then, immediate action is required: call in a professional, certified, bonded and insured arborist to do an onsite inspection and offer a solution. Newly leaning trees are an imminent hazard. If you have a tree that has leaned for a number of years, that tree can still be a hazard during wet, windy weather. Taking periodic photographs can help you determine if a greater lean is developing.

 
Multiple Trunked Trees: This co-dominant condition can result in breakage of major tree parts during storms. Usually, these trunks are weakly attached. Inspect the point where the two trunks meet; if you see splitting beginning, call in an arborist.

Weakly Attached Branches: Trees with many branches arising from the same point on the trunk are prone to breaking during wind storms. Prune out any split branches. Thin out multiple branches.

Hanging or Broken Branches: If you see storm damaged branches hanging from the tree, remove them as soon as possible. This includes removing any completely broken branches that may be resting elsewhere in the tree's canopy.

Cracks in Trunks and Branches: Measure the depth of any cracks with a ruler. If those cracks are more than three inches deep, call in an arborist to determine the best course of action.

Dead Branches: Branches that have completely died are very likely to fall off in a storm. Dead branches are most noticeable in the summer when the tree is in full leaf.

Cavities and Decay: Large, open pockets where branches meet the trunk, or at the base of the trunk, can mean big trouble. The presence of mushrooms on the bark or on exposed roots may indicate wood decay. Call in an arborist.

The Arbor Day Foundation website has this animated guide to proper pruning techniques.


Also:
Tips for Hiring an Arborist.

Making Mulch on Labor Day

We spent Labor Day creating garden gold: mulch. 

 We turned 18.5 cubic yards of tree branches...

Into this. Perhaps two yards of the finished product...aka, mulch!

But we had help. The Sacramento area-based arborists from Up A Tree brought their huge, chipper-shredder to our property.

They breezed through the chipping chore, reducing three large piles of tree trimmings into mulch in just a few hours. If we had used our small chipper-shredder, we'd still be out there. 

In fact, Jeanne and I took more time piling up the branches on Saturday than Up A Tree spent chipping them on Monday.

One great benefit of using your own tree trimmings as mulch: you aren't importing someone else's problems (diseases and insects from another job site). One way to mitigate this: keep those down-the-street trimmings in a pile on your property for several months. That can help to destroy pest eggs and certain pathogens, if the temperature in the pile gets up to 140 degrees or so. The downside of keeping tree trimmings in a large pile: ant colonies might move in. Be careful when shoveling!

And, more and more tree trimming companies are reluctant to pass on their tree trimmings to a nearby neighbor. In the good old days, you could bribe (or ask nicely) a tree trimming company doing work on your street to drop off their load in your yard; after all, they were probably just going to take it to the dump. Not any more. Due to the demand of this as a mulch, many arbor companies are keeping or reselling chipped/shredded tree trimmings. Still, it can't hurt to ask!

 Benefits of a homegrown organic mulch, such as chipped tree branches or compost:

 
• Inexpensive.

• Retains moisture.

• Keeps soil temperature constant, reducing plant stress.

• Suppresses weeds.

 

• Gradually increases soil organic matter, feeding the soil. 

• Attracts beneficial organisms that improve soil fertility and porosity.

 

• Mulch encourages healthier plants, reducing the needs for pesticides and fertilizers.

• Protects roots and plants from mechanical injury.

• On hillsides and around rural homes, it suppresses the spread of brush fires.

Some cautionary notes: 
• Don't pile up organic mulch around the trunks of trees and shrubs. 

• Keep mulch a few inches away from trunks to lessen the chances of rots and other diseases.
• Don't import someone else's problems. Avoid using as mulch any diseased plant material, including suffering tree limbs, diseased leaves, herbicide-treated lawn.

To cover an area with three inches of mulch: apply about 1 cubic yard for every 100 square feet of area. It may need replenishing each year.

One of the downsides of mulch: native bees will be dissuaded from nesting in mulched areas. To attract ground-dwelling native bees, keep a portion of your yard unmulched.
 
For a great publication about mulch, download this pdf, "The Landscapers' Guide to Mulch" from the California Integrated Waste Management Board.