When a tree has sustained extensive damage, it makes sense to plan for its removal. On the other hand, a tree with only minimal damage shows evidence of an ability to recover from the limited amount of damaging effects.

A physician would never deny treatment to a patient that has shown some signs of recovery. In the same way, a homeowner should not terminate those approaches that are known to aid the recovery of a slightly damaged plant/tree.

How to attack the crown of a slightly damaged tree?

• Prune it so that it takes-on a more balanced appearance.
• Remove the damaged limbs.
• Remove any limb that seems to be hanging on. Normally, such a limb has some type of break, one that creates the structure that allows the broken branch to hang onto one that remains unbroken.
• Reduce the number of branches that display an obvious break. Any branch’s broken section could permit the entrance of insects or disease-carrying organisms.

How the tree benefits, if the homeowner has taken the approach suggested above?

The removal of damaged branches encourages the formation of new growth. The new growth aids creation of a special sort of branch. The newly created branch has a special property. It does not permit the buildup of ice on that sprout-covered limb during a future storm, one that could arrive during the winter months.

The act of thinning the branches reduces the amount of natural material that might get pounded on by a strong wind. In other words, it lowers the extent of the tree’s branch-dependent resistance. As a result, any wind flows easily through the existing, the uncut branches.

In their natural state, the limbs of a healthy tree allow the wind to pass through them. That creates the whistling or wrestling that a homeowner expects to hear. Homeowners do not want to hear the sounds that have come to be associated with the breaking of branches.

Tree Service in Palo Alto knows that if a tree’s crown has a balanced appearance, no one section will feel a stronger impact, once a wind starts blowing. The even distribution of the wind’s force reduces the chances that any more breaks will appear among the tree’s branching structure.

How can a homeowner distinguish major damage from minor damages?

If disappearance of a large limb has caused the disappearance of a portion of the tree’s trunk, that would qualify as a big problem. A tree-care company might suggest covering the exposed truck. That trick has been used in the past, but it does not encourage new growth in the damaged area. Moreover, it fails to create an attractive-looking structure, such as one created by careful removal of any harmed limb.