Tree care in winter involves preparing trees for the growth season.
When is the growth season?
That is the late spring and summer of each year. Preparations for the growth season should be carried out in late winter and early spring.
The cleanup procedures are an important part of the preparations, prior to the growth season.
Prune off the dead or diseased branches.Check for presence of weak branches, those that might fall off, if exposed to the forces created by a storm. Remove those same weak structures.
Improve the soil at each tree’s base
Test the pH of the soil.Add 2 to 3 inches of mulch. That limits the growth of weeds, works to maintain the soil’s temperature, and aids retention of moisture. Moreover, mulch contains a wealth of organic matter. Commercial Tree Service in San Jose will apply fertilizer; it supplements the organic matter in the mulch.
Check for evidence that insects have chosen a tree for the site of their winter refuge.
• Can you find any branch that contains flat, round bumps?
• Can you find any spot on the tree’s surface that contains a sticky substance?
Check for evidence of a pathogen in any tree
Are there mushrooms growing on any tree’s surface?
Consider seeking the assistance of an arborist, when performing that particular check. The advice in the preceding sections has focused on care for established trees during the winter months. Once the growth season has started, a homeowner might discover a tiny new tree in some area of the home’s yard. Homeowners that hope to preserve the health of such a tiny structure should know what to do.
Are there any obvious threats to that tiny structure?
Does it lie in or close to the path that is taken by water, as it rushes out of the downspout from the gutter system? If that is the case, then work on introducing changes in the area where the downspout has its opening. Try to re-route the water, or to create some protection for the not-yet-established tree.
Has it popped from the ground in an area where there is lots of foot traffic? If that is the case, then it needs some type of protection, so that nobody steps on it. Search for some object that could be used to force anyone walking close to the endangered plant to step around that same object. Be sure that the protection does not keep the sun and rainwater from reaching the tiny plant’s leaves.
Do not bury that same plant in mulch, but do place some mulch around it. That should keep any weeds from stealing the nutrients and water that exist within the ground that has helped to nurture some tree’s seed.