You’ll be sorry if you neglect your Southeastern Massachusetts trees this winter. Performing winter tree care can give you healthier and better-looking trees next spring, summer, and fall. Here are seven critical items we recommend you put on your winter tree care checklist this year.
Key Takeaways
- Winter is the perfect time for tree pruning and removal, offering easier cleanup, less yard damage, and better scheduling flexibility.
- Protect young and thin-barked trees from frost cracks, sunscald, and salt damage by wrapping them with burlap or specialized tree wraps.
- Structural pruning in winter reduces stress on trees, prevents storm damage, and improves tree health and form for the growing season.
- Keep an eye on snow and ice damage after storms, but avoid working under trees with snow-laden branches until the risk has melted.
- Plan ahead by scheduling spring tree care services early to protect your trees from insects, diseases, and other seasonal challenges.
7 Items to Add to Your Winter Tree Care Checklist in Greater South Easton
It can be easy to forget about your trees in the winter. With no leaves and the colder temperatures causing you to be outside less, tree care might be something you throw out the window. However, winter is an important time in your tree’s life.
Trees and branches can still fall in the winter.
1. Remove Any Unwanted or Dangerous Trees This Winter
Tree care companies remove trees all year, but winter is actually one of the best times to remove trees. Some of the benefits of winter tree removal include:
- Easier scheduling as tree care companies have more open calendars
- No leaves on trees make cleanup easier
- Easier to use heavy machinery with the frozen ground
- Lower risk of damage to your yard
Trees can become a hazard when their structural integrity wanes and they risk falling onto a structure. Removing these trees will increase the safety of your property, protecting your home and family from falling trees and branches.
2. Wrap Your Trees to Prevent Frost Cracks and Salt Damage
Wrapping isn’t just for presents as we approach the holidays; it’s also something to do for your trees. Wrapping your at-risk trees can prevent them from a few problems.
Frost Cracks
Have you ever been outside at night in the winter and heard a loud pop? Chances are it was frost cracks on trees. Frost cracks occur when warmer, sunny days turn to cold nights. A tree’s outer sections begin to contract due to the cold, while the inner sections remain expanded from the daytime warmth. Eventually, the outer section can’t contract anymore and will crack.
Sunscald
Sunscalds is a similar problem for trees, especially young ones and those with thin bark. The sun will warm the bark and cause the cells to come out of dormancy. After sunset, the plummeting temperature will damage the cells, causing sunscald.
Salt Damage
The final problem wrapping can help prevent is salt damage. Here in Southeastern Massachusetts and neighboring Rhode Island, we use road salt to melt the ice and snow. When passing cars splash the salt onto trees and soil, it can damage your trees.
Use burlap or a specialized tree wrap to protect your trees. These wraps help shield your trees from the sun and any salt spray that may cause winter tree damage.
3. Prune to Improve Overall Structure
Winter is the best time to prune in Southeast Massachusetts, especially when they need significant pruning. Some of the reasons we love winter pruning include:
- Less stress for trees
- No risk of spreading diseases
- Easier to see a tree’s structure without leaves
- Protection from nor’easter damage
- Better fruit next year
Winter structural pruning can help shape your tree and correct any improper form the tree is developing. Structural pruning reduces the risk of tree failure and seeks to favor one dominant leader by pruning out competing branches.
PRO TIP: While winter is excellent for pruning most trees, spring and summer flowering ornamentals are not one of them. Pruning in the winter will remove the buds that flower next season. Instead, wait to prune these trees until after they’ve finished blooming.
4. Look for Signs of Snow and Ice Damage After a Storm
Snow and ice can weigh down branches and eventually cause them to break. In minor cases, this will just leave you with a few broken branches to clean up after the snow melts. In more severe cases, you may need to call a professional to help with downed powerlines or trees.
WARNING: Do not work under a tree when there is snow and ice on the branches. Packed snow or ice can cause injuries, and weak branches can fall without warning. Always wait until the snow melts before working underneath a tree in the winter.
5. Provide Supplemental Water During Droughts
Droughts are always a hot topic during the summer. But your trees may still need supplemental water in the winter during a dry spell. A combination of harsh wind and a lack of precipitation can dehydrate
a tree and leave it without a means to restore its water content. Lack of water is most prominent with evergreens that are used as windbreaks and young trees without extensive root systems.
PRO TIP: You can only provide supplemental water to your tree if the ground is unfrozen. Use a garden hose with a soaker attachment to water around your trees. Try to soak all around a tree’s drip line (the portion of the tree under its canopy). Once done, drain the hose of all its water and store it, as leaving it outside could break it.
6. Schedule Your Spring Tree Care Services
Though it’s hard to think about spring with all the snow on the ground, it’s never too early to make plans for the next active growing season. Tree care companies see an uptick in business in the spring as more people head outside and begin thinking about their trees.
One of spring’s busiest services for tree care companies is preventive spraying for insects and diseases. If you’ve dealt with insects and diseases in the past, consider scheduling preventive services before the schedule fills up.
PRO TIP: Want to learn more about the invasive insects we’re on the lookout for in Southeastern Massachusetts? See our previous article on six pesky invasive insects.
7. Apply Anti-Desiccants to Your Evergreens
Winter desiccation is the process of broadleaf evergreens and other conifers losing water through their foliage faster than they can replace it through their roots. Anti-desiccant sprays create a waxy layer over the leaves of broadleaf evergreens that slow down transpiration.
Timing the application is critical. If you do it too early, you’ll limit your broadleaf evergreen’s ability to send water from the foliage to the roots. Instead, wait until late fall or early winter and always follow the label on an anti-desiccant that tells you when to apply it.
Regal Tree Can Help You Complete Your Winter Tree Care Checklist
Don’t ignore your trees this winter. Checking off some items on your winter tree care checklist can leave you with healthier and more vibrant trees next spring. While you can complete some items yourself, it’s better to let a professional handle most winter tree care.
Need help completing your winter tree care checklist? We can help. Our team can handle pruning, removal, and everything in between. Call us today at 774-719-2450 or request a quote online.
