Preparing Your Trees for Hurricane Season

During hurricane season, it is normal to think about the large trees in your yard or hanging over your house. Here are some pointers to prepare a healthy, mature tree for the hurricane season.

• Clean trees by cutting primarily dead, dying or diseased branches.

• Maintain trees natural growth form and normal height to spread relationship.

• Maintain interior foliage to deflect & dampen wind energy.

• Allow branches and foliage to grow near ground for best wind tolerance.

• Promote strong branch attachments by shortening competing branches to foster a dominant lead branch. This ensures development of securing branch collar and wide angled branch attachments.

• Have mature trees evaluated every year by a professional urban forester or a certified arborist.

• Cut tops or side cutting crowns of trees, as this will cause unbalancing, decay and limb breakage.

• Cut primary limbs along property lines or house lines. This causes the tree to be more vulnerable to wind damage.

• Cut lower limbs or openings in crown as these results in turbulence and rotational wind, which can shear branches.

• Make flush cuts or angular cuts that don't conform to protecting branch collar.

• Cut large roots for curbs and utilities and driveways, as this may cause windfall.

• Remove more than 25% of crown from mature tree in one growing season.