Dec 1, 2020
It may not seem like the likeliest time of the year for tree cutting and related services — our crew doesn’t always think so — but there are several reasons why wintertime might just be the best time for tree cut services.
First of all, springtime means storms — high winds and excessive rain. These, along with disease, are the factors most likely to bring down a tree. And one that is near your house, outlying structures, or parked vehicles can damage any or all of them when gravity gets the upper hand.
Taking care of any potential problems over the winter will save you the stress of riding out a storm worrying about that big tree coming down. And it might save you a whole lot of bigger problems — like an emergency roof repair.
So, if there’s a tree on your property that you suspect may have issues — a section of leaves that was discolored in the fall, some dead branches you noticed over the summer, or bark that is peeling away or deeply cracked — then winter is the right time to let us take a look and see if more substantial action is required.
Here are some other reasons why winter is a great time to do tree work:
- For many trees — especially fruit trees — winter is the safest and most desirable time to prune. Since they are dormant, the organisms that thrive in trees — insects, bacteria, fungi — are also inactive, making their spread much less likely. The same holds true for shrubs.
- New growth is not provoked when tree work is done in colder weather. This encourages quicker and better wound closure and gives trees time to heal before the longer days and warmer temps stimulate growth.
- Without leaves to obscure the view of a tree’s underlying structure — its limbs and branches — it’s actually much easier to see segments that are more likely to cause property damage if they fell or are showing signs of decay. Think of it as a seasonal x-ray that a practiced arborist can use in making a diagnosis.
- Although heavy rain and winds are more common in spring, the kind of freezing rain more common to winter can be especially dangerous for weakened tree limbs. The weight added by accumulating ice can push a large limb or branch past the breaking point; anything beneath it is at risk. The sooner such dangers are removed the better.
- The lower rainfall amounts in the winter in Delaware also means that the ground is firmer and can better handle the foot traffic and, in some cases, heavy equipment that tree cutting and pruning require.
- After a round of preventive maintenance and medicine, trees are ready to go for it in the spring. The pruned areas will fill-in quickly when the growing season takes off in a few months and, if you have fruit trees, expect a more abundant crop after a dose of wintertime TLC. Since most trees are leafless in the winter anyway, you actually won’t notice any pruning that’s been done as much as you would in the spring or summer (which will probably leave hard-to-miss voids in the foliage for the remainder of the season).
Strobert Tree Services has been providing the full range of tree cutting and arborist services throughout Delaware — New Castle County, Kent County, and Sussex County — for twenty years. We’ve worked through the winter all of those twenty years and have the general know-how, specialized equipment, and right attitude to do any winter work you require. We’ll get your property ready for the spring and summer.
