• Proper Tree Care Techniques
• Benefits Of Trees
• Seasonally Appropriate Tree and Shrub Care
• Tree Selection
• Insect and disease problems
• Seasonality
• Leaf size, shape , color and quantity
• Recognizing tree hazards

Proper Tree Care Techniques

The arc of a tree's life is perceived by the humans that live around it to be typically longer than human lives. In many instances it is. However, many trees live short life spans, because they are growing in non-native conditions or in areas to which they are not well suited.

It is a proud moment to plant a tree, and a sad moment to lose one. Therefore, observation and implementation of a few simple steps will permit you to enjoy a young tree's growth from sapling to mature specimen.

When trees receive good treatment from their earliest days, they respond and mature more quickly and live longer and healthier lives.

Good tree care begins with the selection of well structured and well rooted trees at the nursery where they are grown.

Safe and gentle transportation to their planting site prevents the tender bark , slender branches, and sensitive root systems from damage that can set their development back for years.

Good situational planting and good technique are the next crossroads of a tree's life. Choosing a spot where they can receive adequate air, light and water will help a young tree thrive. Good planting technique means ensuring that the root ball is properly unwrapped and girdling ropes, wires, burlap and baskets are removed, and excess soil over the root flare is adjusted. The young tree must be firmly planted but not squeezed tightly into a hole. Staking may or may not be necessary, depending on the tree 's type, size and location. Finally, good watering, light. fertilization and light mulching will promote the tree's establishment, or quick acceptance of its new growing conditions.

Structural pruning is important through the tree's first years. It must be trained to develop radial branches directed away from the trunk and each other. It should be pruned and trained to grow in an open and uncomplicated form, which will allow air and light to pass through the tree's branches, promoting good health and leaf development. These widely spaced scaffold branches will form the major limbs and branches for its life.

Later, maintenance pruning primarily consists of "crown cleaning", which is the removal of dead, diseased or damaged branches, which naturally occur with the passage of time. Thinning of undesirable sucker growth, removal of encroaching vines, cutting back of neighboring trees which obscure the light, and perhaps occasional fertilization benefit a tree which is growing in its non- native environment.

A well chosen, well planted, and well pruned tree will rarely need chemical protection. We encourage you to consult with an arborist to implement the full menu of tree care, in order to ensure the full growth and culmination of your investment.

Benefits Of Trees

Measure the benefits of trees in your life by answering these few, simple questions.

• Was your childhood's best memory played out on the background of trees? Climbing in a tree house? Swimming near a wooded lake? Leaping into a pile of autumn leaves? Having a picnic under a large tree?
• Were your romantic moments of love walking through the woods, or getting married in a beautiful garden setting?
• Why do the words " lush" and ""leafy" appeal to the human soul?
• Why have human beings sheltered in and among trees since before the dawn of recorded civilization?

Imagine a world without trees, and how much poorer we would all be. If you can find a place or a way that trees have touched your life, then please tap into that place in your soul and act to protect trees today. The environmental pressure on them is greater every day, and every generation is consuming and destroying them faster than they can be replenished.

Please remember: Arborists are people who speak for trees, who cannot speak for themselves.

Please visit the link below for more details of this discussion: http://www.treesaregood.com/treecare/tree_benefits.aspx

Seasonally Appropriate Tree and Shrub Care

Tree Believers Inc, Inc, works all year round, aiding you in having the best garden possible, in ways that are appropriate for the season. We love the weather in Long Island! When viewed over a period of years, our climate is generally moderate. We do have: abundant rains, temperatures that do not go extremely high nor extremely low, no scorching heat, Santa Ana winds, nor glacial mounds of snow and ice. We have plants growing here from all over the world, many different ecological zones, and quite different micro climates. Depending on what part of the region you live in, therefore, the garden in Long Island is a diverse set of processes and operations. Some rules, in general, apply to all areas.

Fall: This is the time to " put your garden to bed" and try to ensure that plants emerge in the spring with their batteries fully charged up and ready to grow. We suggest pruning, mulching, fertilizing with root bio stimulants, and targeted applications of anti desiccant sprays, to keep sensitive plants from drying out by wintery blasts of wind, as the order of the day. We do thinning, cabling bracing and staking to prevent storm damage in the larger trees. We can help you in tying up your Arborvitaes and Leyland Cypresses so that they aren't crushed by heavy, wet snows. You can be confident that you have done all you can to prepare your garden for the cold months ahead, by letting us take care of all the loose ends.

Winter: Read gardening magazines for ideas, then call Tree Believers Inc to begin plans for early season changes! Schedule a meeting with us to start work on your design, on small scale or large. Even before final plans are in place, we can prepare the ground for future action. Tree Believers Inc can help you save money by scheduling lesser priority work in the winter months when our rates are significantly lower, including pruning deadwood, pruning of outlying and lower priority trees, removing encroaching vines, clearing undesirable under brush, and storm damage cleanup, if necessary. We can finalize the plans and then, It's time to get your Plant Health Program in place for the spring, to make sure that you are on schedule for year -long maintenance using the safest and most effective horticultural techniques. If we haven't contacted you by March 1, reach out to us to ensure prompt service during our busiest time, from March 15th to July 4th.

Spring: By transplanting older, overgrown plants. to better, more suitable locations you can free up room in your garden. Newer, smaller plants add color, texture and light to your garden. It's a time to fill in shady areas with plants that tolerate low light conditions and add top soil or mulch to control erosion and run off due to heavy rains. Install a garden walkway to stroll through your garden. Make sure key plants get the maximum exposure and your background plants are strong and healthy. Plant privacy screens, shade trees, or summer blooming perennials at this time. Get your vegetable, herb or cut flower beds into shape and check to make sure the plants are getting adequate but not excessive water, to establish well. Adjust soil and mulch levels to make sure that the plants' root systems are not suffering from lack of oxygen. Have a soil test done to make sure that proper nutrient and microbial activity is occurring in the soil.

Summer: Get those legs in shape! Meaning: it's time to prune the first flush of growth and keep the garden in plants in proportion to themselves and their neighbors. Make sure your irrigation system is operating at the minimum necessary level, as too much water is not beneficial and is wasteful. Begin enjoying your first harvest of flowers, fruits and herbs from your annual gardens. It's time also to begin replenishing nutrients to the soil by adding compost, root bio stimulants, and slow release fertilizers.

Tree Selection

There are so many words to describe trees. They are all about function and appearance. This is the contribution of trees to our lives. Please try to define what you need from your trees, and we can find the right tree for you.

Shade: Oak, Elm, Maple, Sophora, Katsuratree....What are those last ones...? Only the most beautiful, tolerant, pest free and durable are used.

Insect and Disease Problems

We are familiar with the look of trees on our properties and in neighborhoods. With even casual observation, we can see if something is going wrong. A few simple mental bookmarks will help you determine if should call a professional in for a consultation regarding your trees' health.

If you answer "yes" to two or more of these questions, call an arborist for a consultation. He or she will be able to assess the severity of the problem and recommend and prioritize actions to be taken to save the tree, if possible.

Seasonality

• Are the tree's leaves emerging and growing at the expected time? Later by weeks or months, than in previous years?
• Are they coming in fully, to entirely cover the tree's canopy and branches, or are there dead branches that are barren, or branch tips sticking out beyond the tree's foliage ?
• Is the tree showing fall color early, for example, June, July or August?
• Are evergreen trees turning brown, yellow or white at unexpected times?
• Are leaves or needles dropping off unexpectedly?

Leaf Size, Shape , Color and Quantity

Remember your tree in its best days. Is the tree as green as it once was? Is the canopy very thin, with you being able to see through a tree that was formerly very dense?

• Are leaves as dark green ( or red, or blue, depending on the type of tree) as they were in years past?
• Are the needles quite short, or not fully formed, or curled around the edges?
• Are the leaves being consumed ( eaten before they reach maturity?)

Branches, Bark and Trunk

• Do you notice unusual patches on the branches or leaves that are brown, black, red, or colorless?
• Are there many more dead branches than usual on the tree?
• Is sap dripping or falling or oozing from the trunk?
• Are large sections of the bark falling off? Is the bark an unusual color? Ar there large mushrooms or fungi present?
• Are there flat sides to the tree's trunk, which should be round? Can you see the root flare, where the tree enters the ground, which should flare out in a bell shape? Or does the tree go straight into the ground, like a telephone pole or a pipe?
• Are there large cavities or holes in the trunk which are easily seen and noticeable?

Recognizing Tree Hazards

If you own trees, it is your responsibility to yourself and to others who use your property or even approach it occasionally, to maintain your trees in safe condition. The law applies a" reasonable person" standard to the maintenance of trees, which applies to all owners.

These are some important signs of tree hazards to be aware of.

Call an arborist immediately if you recognize these signs in or around your property.

• Large dead branches in the tree or on the ground.
• Cracked or hanging branches in the tree or almost touching the ground.
• Leaning trees which appear to be shifting, meaning that their lean is getting stronger. This may be accompanied by cracking of the earth alongside or around the base.
• Loud cracking or popping sounds originating in the tree.
• Large sections of bark falling off the trunk of the tree.
• Large mushrooms or unfamiliar objects around the base of the tree, or accumulating in the lower branches, for instance: saw dust, pencil shavings, or powdery piles.
• Hollows, cavities, and cracks in the base of the tree.
• Sink holes or lifted sections around your trees or in your lawn nearby.
• Carpenter ant activity, persistent woodpecker activity, large mammals such as raccoons or possums nesting in your tree.
• If you recently had your sidewalk or driveway re done, or a cesspool repaired or replaced, or had other major subterranean work done, have an arborist in for an assessment of root damages caused. This is a subtle and long term process which causes damage which not be seen for months or years.