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Planting shade trees on your landscaping has many amazing benefits. Underneath a full-grown shade tree is the best location for a backyard barbeque or for kids to play outside. It will also keep your home cooler during warmer months of the year.

To get all of the benefits of shade trees, you need to plant the right species and care for them properly.

CA Tree Trimming has recommendations for the best trees to plant for shade, as well as some expert advice on maintaining your shade trees so they grow strong and healthy.

Planting Trees for Shade

Any tree can technically provide shade, but there are some species that are built for optimal shade. These trees typically have a thick, wide canopy that extends out nearly as far as it does upward.

In the following parapgraphs, we’ve provided examples of shade trees based on whether they would be best suited for your back or front yard.

Back Yard Shade Trees

Shade trees in the back yard are typically for your own benefit. Next-door neighbors and passersby probably won’t see these trees , so they can be purely for shade and enjoyment.

In addition to shade, these trees can create year-round color as well as some additional privacy from neighbors.

Here are popular choices:

• Magnolia
• Sugar maple or silver maple
• Weeping willow
• Weeping cherry
• Red oak

If you have a large enough space, a live oak is another beautiful choice. Live oaks are considered the fastest growing shade trees, and are able to get very big. A mature live oak is able to reach up to 80 feet tall and up to 100 feet wide.

A lot of these back yard tree suggestions get extremely large, so you definitely want to do a little research to determine if the tree will have enough space to grow to its full potential.

If there is not enough space, the tree’s root system can damage your fencing or home. You will also need to prune the tree every year to keep it from being overgrown. A tree that is too large for its area will most likely have to be cut down, which is an unfortunate and sometimes expensive situation.

Front Yard Shade Trees

In the front yard, you are planting trees for your enjoyment as well, but these trees will be a lot more beneficial for increasing curb appeal and value to your home since they can be seen.

Buy shade trees for the front yard that are a little smaller so they don’t overpower your home and landscaping. These trees should complement your landscaping in size and color, while still providing lots of shade for front yard relaxation and play.

These are some of our favorites:

Red maple
River birch
Dogwood
White oak
Ginkgo tree

These types of trees are colorful throughout the year, and they’ll showcase even more color in the fall months.
Another great choice for your front or side yard is the ‘Green Giant’ Arborvitae. This tree looks like a hedge and can be planted in a long row with others to provide privacy as well as shade.

With these suggestions in mind, we encourage you to plant what you like. In all honesty, any type of tree can grow to become a “shade tree.” so long as the trees you choose are suitable for the climate in California, they will provide your yard and home with some shade.

Benefits of Planting Shade Trees

The benefits of having shade for your home are numerous — and there are a few that you probably wouldn’t typically think about.

Shade, Obviously – When temperatures soar, you don’t have to hide indoors if you have a comfortable, shady yard. Place a chair or hammock under your biggest shade tree and enjoy time outside as long as you want.

Climate Control – Trees can help control the temperature in your yard and inside your house. Not only do trees protect you from the hot sun, but they can also make it feel 10-15 degrees cooler underneath their protective canopies. This results in less solar radiation on your home as well, which might result in more affordable energy costs!

Better Air Quality – Trees produce oxygen and filter out pollutants from the air, so there is healthier air around your home. Arbor Day Foundation research reports that one mature tree absorbs around 48 pounds of CO2 from the air.

Safety for Animals – If you’re into bird watching or think chipmunks are cute, your trees can give them all they will need to build a habitat, find food and raise babies.

Fun – What kid doesn’t want a backyard tree house or tire swing? If you have small children, shade trees can provide hours of fun and joyful memories.

How to Care for Shade Trees

Maintaining shade trees is pretty simple as long as you’ve chosen the right species for the climate in California. Trees are strong and durable after the first few years, demanding little attention or maintenance.

Consult a local arborist from CA Tree Trimming if you have questions about the care of your trees, or to help you determine the best tree for your property.

As soon as you have determined the best shade tree(s), follow this simple care guide until your shade tree is fully grown.

Planting Your Shade Tree

The east, west and south sides of your property get the most sun, so plant your new trees on one of these sides of your yard. This is two-fold: 1) the trees will then provide the most amount of shade and 2) they will also receive the most amount of sun to grow healthy.

Pruning Your Shade Tree

Trim during the first year or two after planting the tree to help to shape it and help it develop a strong foundation. To be safe, and for the best results, call CA Tree Trimming for tree trimming in California. A certified arborist will arrive at your home and deliver professional care for the tree.

Watering Your Shade Tree

Watering a new tree is crucial. This helps them develop a deep and strong root system and will give the tree stability in the long run.

Fertilizing Your Shade Tree

Fertilize a shade tree just like you would any other tree in order to aid healthy growth. Fertilizer is not a requirement for caring for a shade tree, but it can help your tree to grow faster and produce more leaves, which are the primary source of your shade.

We hope this blog post was helpful! Remember, when it is time to prune or trim a new shade tree, CA Tree Trimming can help! Call us and a certified arborist in California will visit your property, examine the tree and formulate the best maintenance plan for its long-term health and growth.

Tree pruning is best left to the pros. It’s a dangerous job, climbing trees, wielding chainsaws and lowering heavy tree limbs to the ground; and it can also be dangerous for the tree as well. Trees that aren’t pruned correctly can sustain a lifetime of damage.

Rather than putting yourself and the tree itself at risk, enlist someone who is trained and experienced to do the job for you.

This will lead to much healthier trees and a safer environment around your home for many reasons:

• Healthy trees are sturdier and not as likely to cause damage during storms
• Cared for trees don’t attract or spread diseases and parasites
• Trimmed trees produce more flowers or fruit
• Pruned trees offer shade while still allowing air to flow throughout their canopies and your landscaping

CA Tree Trimming highly suggests pruning trees that are near your home or any that are an integral part of your landscape.

Is Tree Trimming Necessary?

It is not necessary. But it is important. Trees are hardy and survive on their own across the world, in various different climates and regions, without trimming.

However, there are a lot of benefits of professional tree trimming, so it’s recommended for any trees that you value. This can include sentimental trees, fruit trees and flowering trees or trees that offer an important service for your home, such as shade or home to wildlife.

Tree Trimming Gone Wrong

Pruning a tree is a difficult project. You are going to need the right tools and a lot of information to ensure the job is done correctly. The majority of homeowners don’t have either of these!

But that’s alright, because there are a lot of companies out there who know how to properly trim trees for an affordable price to you including all arborists in California we work with!

Here are the 5 most common mistakes people make when they attempt DIY tree pruning that can lead to many tree problems. These are things that an experienced arborist from CA Tree Trimming will know, and that’s the reason why their services are worth the price!

Pruning Too Much

When done properly, pruning is a never-ending process. Beginning when your trees are just 2 or 3 years old, they should be looked after by a professional if you value them and want to keep them healthy.

A huge mistake people often make when trimming trees by themselves is trimming too much of the tree all at once. This occurs because they have let the tree’s growth get out of hand and try to correct it all immediately. Ideally, you should only cut off 5-20% of the tree’s crown at the final removal cut. It is easier to do this during a time of year that the leaves are off, but an experienced arborist is able to properly prune trees any time of year.

Cutting at the Wrong Place

A trained tree specialist knows where to cut each limb to protect against damage. This cut should be done just beyond the branch collar, the exact place where the branch connects to the tree trunk.

Trimming too close to the branch collar exposes the tree to pests and decay. Cutting too far from it leaves a stump when the tree has recovered. Most DIY tree trimming results in an improper cut, leaving either structural or aesthetic issues.

Pruning Large Branches

Branches larger than 4 inches in diameter really shouldn’t be pruned unless it is absolutely necessary. Cutting off a branch of this size can result in imbalance in the tree and expose it to insects and decay as the tree recovers from losing such a large branch.

Conservative pruning every year ensures that the company only has to cut off branches that are 2-3 inches in diameter, which results in a more attractive shape for the tree and less risk of hurting the tree or exposing it to disease and pests.

Topping the Tree

Tree topping is an outdated type of pruning, and for good reason! With this service, arborists would just cut the top off of the tree to get the desired height. It was neither attractive nor was it beneficial for the tree, so the vast majority of arborists do not practice tree topping anymore.

As a DIY tree pruning, you might think this is a good way to reduce the height of your tree with just a single cut, but once you have cut off the top of a tree, there’s virtually no chance that it will ever regain a natural shape.

The Solution? Call CA Tree Trimming

Here’s the truth. Your tree may never recover from poor trimming.

Attempting this project yourself might seem like a way to save a little money, but you could end up with way more expenses trying to revive damaged trees, so it’s a lot safer (and more economical in the long run) to hire a certified arborist in California from CA Tree Trimming.

Limbs don’t grow back. The tree will grow more, but it will not grow back in the same places, which can lead to odd shapes that might take years to fix. The tree might look bad for the remainder of its life, all because of just one trimming error.

Incorrect pruning could also cause death of the tree. Cutting off too many branches (and, therefore, leaves) can alter the tree’s photosynthesis process, meaning it won’t get all of the water it needs or enough carbon dioxide and sunlight to continue healthy growth.

Cutting off too many branches can also send the tree into a state of shock. Shock can be overcome, but it does take a great deal of patience and care. Even with proper maintenance, a tree undergoing shock may still die.

Avoid all of these tree trimming mistakes and call CA Tree Trimming to speak with a tree care specialist in California able to customize a plan to ensure your tree continues to blossom and look beautiful for years to come!

Trees are living things, so that means that they can become “sick” like humans and animals can. A disease or other tree issue may take a little while to show up due to the sheer size of the tree, and once you notice a symptom, it could be too late to save the tree.

A professional arborist from CA Tree Trimming can help you diagnose and treat common tree issues so that there is a much better chance of keeping the tree. Learn about our service here. Not only can an experienced arborist keep a tree from dying, but they are also able to help trees get healthier growth and bloom more flowers or fruit.

Have you noticed a tree on your property that has always seemed healthy but all of the sudden looks like something is wrong? In the next paragraphs, we’ll explain some of the most typical tree problems and diseases and what these symptoms mean for a tree.

If you spot any of these things on any of your trees, act fast to have the best chance of saving the tree and the ones around it.

Tree Diseases & Common Problems

These 7 things are the most common problems addressed by professional arborists in California. Once you think one of these things could be wrong with your tree, contact someone with the training and tools to help!

Tree Diseases

Leaf Rust – Leaf rust is actually a fungus that is common in both trees and plants. The name originates from the yellow and brown spots this disease produces on the leaves.

Leaf rust is bad because it inhibits the leaves’ photosynthesis, the process by which it breathes. Leaf rust can be tended to with fungicides and selective tree pruning of the diseased leaves. It may be recommended to remove entire branches with leaf rust.

Witches’ Broom – This tree disease creates a large clump of twigs, dead leaves and branches that resemble a broom shape. It is caused by insects, unusually rainy weather or fungus. The formation of a clump of leaves and twigs is the tree’s reaction to infection or harm.

Some instances of Witches’ Broom are fatal for the tree, while others are just considered a growth malformation. An arborist can diagnose the issue.

Mildew – Mildew is a type of fungus that grows on almost anything in wet conditions, but even when the moist conditions are gone, mildew can continue to thrive. Mildew usually appears as a powdery substance, usually white, and it often shows up on the leaves of a tree first.

The the best method for eliminating mildew is to apply a fungicide that includes sulfur. This will remove the existing mildew and stop future mildew growth on the tree. You might also need to prune the tree to remove limbs, fruit, flowers and leaves that were affected by the mildew

Gall – Gall is a tree disease that appears when pests or rodents build small nests on the leaves or branches of a tree to lay their eggs in. Most galls are not dangerous for the tree, but none of them are attractive.

Gall appears as as bumps on the tree, in different sizes. They can be white, brown, gray or some color in between.

It is not necessary to treat the tree for galls, but they can inhibit the growth of young trees. Treat galls by killing the pests. You should also clean out from under the tree after the leaves fall off, since this is where the pests live during winter.

Other Tree Problems

Improper Pruning – There’s a science to tree trimming, as well as many types, and if you don’t know how to do it, you could harm the tree past the point of recovery. Consider the type of tree, season and other factors. Under-pruning (or not pruning at all) can be just as big of an issue. Only a trained arborist should be trusted to prune trees in order to keep them healthy.

Lack of Water – New trees can be severely impacted by drought. If you plant new trees, you will probably have to supplement the amount of water they get from rainfall. A tree that is not getting enough water can have its growth stunted. The first sign you are likely to noticed is scorched, dry leaves. Find more tips for new trees here.

Too Much Sun – Do your initial research before planting trees in a sunny area of your property. Many species of trees can handle it without issue, but too much sun can become a problem for any tree if the sun is too hot for an extended period and rainfall is light. A tree that is getting a lot of sun needs extra water to prevent wilting, drooping leaves.

Certified Arborist Services in California

A trained arborist from CA Tree Trimming will be able to quickly diagnose what’s happening with your sick tree and lay out a plan to save it.

Here is what an arborist is qualified to do:

• Inspect trees from the ground and from the limbs of the tree if possible. Getting into the canopy is typically necessary to understand exactly what is causing the symptoms.
• Treat your tree with fertilizers and additives in the dirt or products applied to the leaves. This person will have expert knowledge about the disease affecting your tree and the most effective treatments for it.
• Trim tree limbs to get rid of dead or diseased branches and to assist healthy growth. Even if heavy trimming is necessary, they will know how to remove branches so that the tree survives both the disease and the trimming.
• Remove the tree from your lawn if there is no chance to save it. The worst case is that the tree is too far gone, and removing it is the only way to protect your property and surrounding landscape.

Arborists can also educate you about the other trees that you have om your property and how to best care for them so you don’t return to the same situation again.

Many tree issues look very similar to one another, requiring an expert eye to accurately determine and treat the problem. If your trees appear to be dry, disfigured or dying, call a certified arborist from CA Tree Trimming for an inspection before it’s too late.

When it comes to the question, “What time of year is best for tree tree pruning?” The answer can be vague.

The type of tree often dictates when many species are able to be pruned, along with pest population and activity, local tree and plant diseases and other plants and trees in the yard.

With the guidance of a professional arborist in California, you will be able to figure out which time of year is ideal for trimming your trees to prepare them for success next season and beyond.

Best Season to Trim Trees

Without any other information, CA Tree Trimming recommends pruning trees in the winter. This ranges from November to March in California. This season is best because trees are typically dormant, so pruning will cause the least amount of damage, if any.

There are several benefits to trimming trees in the winter:

Lower risk of insect damage and disease – Pests and plant diseases are mostly inactive during the winter. During the rest of the year, everything from insects to fungus can affect a freshly pruned tree because the tree will be the most vulnerable and these issues are more common when there is warmer weather.

Easier to see the shape of the tree when the leaves are gone – Leaves prevent your arborist from seeing the complete shape of your tree. When tree branches are bare, it is a lot easier to see diseased or dead limbs and branches that are touching versus those that are just close together.

Trees can heal before spring – By performing major tree trimming during the winter, your trees have several months to rebuild callus tissue on the tips of the remaining branch collar. By spring season, you’ll hardly be able to notice where the branches were cut off, and the tree will be able to devote its energy to produce brand new, healthier leaves, fruit or flowers instead of healing new cuts.

Less chance of damaging surrounding landscape – Most of the nearby trees and greenery will also be dormant during this time, so there is a lower risk of damaging them. Many times, a tree is surrounded by annual plants in the warmer seasons, but there are no plants to be disturbed in the winter since these annuals have already died out.

Do All Trees Need Pruning?

Yes, all trees will benefit from annual pruning. Tree trimming each winter is good for trees, but it is also a precaution for the safety of your property and your family. Let us explain:

Pruning Makes the Tree Healthier

Dead and diseased limbs are removed, as are stubs that are susceptible to pests and disease. Limbs that can rub against each other are also pruned so that they don’t weaken one another or cause an open wound on the tree.

Trimming trees each year is also a great way to get expert eyes on the health of your trees so that early signs of decay, disease and pest problems can be identified and dealt with right away.

A Cared-For Tree Serves Its Purpose Better

When a tree becomes overgrown, it starts to be hard for water and nutrients to get to every limb. This can leave the tree looking weak and sick and definitely not doing what it’s intended to do.

Trimmed trees, on the other hand, produce more fruit, healthier leaves and better shade. They are fuller and healthier and less likely to create landscaping problems. So regardless of why you planted a new tree, pruning each winter will maximize the results you want from it.

Trees are More Beautiful After Trimming

If the curb appeal of your yard or landscaping is important to you, tree pruning is important! Trimming trees creates an attractive, uniform size and shape. This is very important if you have many similar trees on your property.

Trimming lower branches and upper branches that grow at improper angles improves the overall look of the tree while also promoting tree health.

Less Chance of Dropping Branches

Tree trimming – done the right way – helps the remaining branches to grow healthier and stronger. Therefore, storms and other inclement weather in California won’t damage your trees the same way they would an unkempt tree. Your home and family will be safer living under and around pruned trees.

Another safety concern for overgrown trees is that they block the view of traffic lights, road signs and driveways. Tree pruning, crown raising and other certified tree care services will keep the tree at a manageable size and stop it from blocking various views.

Call CA Tree Trimming for Tree Pruning

Hiring a professional arborist in California gives you access to their knowledge on tree pruning. We recommend relying on their years of experience if there are trees on your property that you’d like to keep healthy for awhile.

An arborist won’t just look at the immediate situation. Instead, he or she will take time to research your trees and understand their unique scenario (including their location and other factors that may put them at risk of disease or infestation). After gathering all of the information, an arborist will make a long-term plan based on your trees’ unique needs and stick to that plan until the goals for your trees are achieved.

This plan could take many years to implement, but rest assured, it will lead to healthy trees that you and your family can enjoy for generations.

This type of ongoing maintenance will aid in healthy tree growth, help your landscaping fight off plant diseases and increase flower or fruit production from your trees. It will also fortify your trees so there is less risk of falling trees or limbs.

Being proactive about tree trimming will save you a lot of money as well. Preventative maintenance is much more cost-effective than the cost of emergency tree services, storm damage restoration or curing a sick tree from a disease that has spread out of hand (and one that was easily preventable).

If you care about the health of your trees and the curb appeal of your property, trust a certified arborist for tree pruning and maintenance from CA Tree Trimming. Find our service area here. We work with arborists across the entire state of California. Call now!

Tree pruning in California is a professional service that can beautify and reinforce your trees so they will withstand pests, diseases and inclement weather – and look breathtaking doing it!

Pruning has to be done if you want healthy trees, but it has to be done carefully by someone who knows what they’re doing. Like a certified arborist from CA Tree Trimming. You may be able to prune and trim trees safely while they are small, but you also may do irreparable harm to the tree in the process.

To correctly prune trees, you must know all of the following:

• When is the best time to prune your types of trees
• How much of the tree can be pruned at at once
• Where to cut the branches so you do not damage the tree

Removing too much from a tree could kill it or cause structural damage, but precise pruning done annually benefits trees in a lot of ways. Professional pruning improves the appearance of trees, makes them stronger, removes dead or diseased limbs and increases fruit or flower production.

Ideally, pruning needs to be done each year, but as trees get older, you may be able to go two years between major pruning services. Regardless of how regularly you have your trees trimmed, ensure your arborist is qualified to perform the type of tree pruning your trees need. This won’t be a problem if you call CA Tree Trimming in California!

Types of Tree Pruning Methods

There are 7 ways to correctly trim a tree so that it grows healthier and stronger every year.

Depending on the size, type and health concerns of your trees, one pruning method may be more beneficial than another, but each technique has different benefits to consider.

Crown Thinning Your Trees

Crown thinning is common for older, overgrown trees in California. This method removes weak branches within the crown of the tree to allow more sunlight and air flow through the crown. Air flow is important to help prevent disease.

This tree pruning technique also eliminates branches and limbs that are touching so they no longer rub against each other and snap or create weakened areas that can be an access point for pests. Limbs that grow at odd angles are typically cut off during crown thinning.

Crown Raising Your Trees

This trimming technique only removes branches at the lower part of the crown so limbs start higher up on the trunk. Letting low branches get too big makes them hard to remove, and they can draw nutrients from the top of the tree, resulting in less fruit and a weaker tree.

There are several reasons you might decide to raise the crown of a tree. Frequently, it is done to clear the line of sight for cars and pedestrians, but it can also be done to increase space for landscaping beneath the tree.

It is a very common method for large trees that are close to homes and other buildings.

Crown Reduction

Crown reduction reduces the total size of the crown from its outer edge. It shortens branches vertically and horizontally to maintain the tree at a certain size. By reducing the size of the crown, you can remove the need to chop the tree down because it won’t interfere with traffic lights, power lines or street lights.

Even if the tree isn’t close to structures like these, crown reduction can make the tree look much better because it also removes irregular growth. This is a smart idea for trees that are a variety of ages but are supposed to look uniform.

Crown Cleaning

Also referred to as deadwood pruning, crown cleaning is a minimally invasive tree pruning method that removes dead, broken or diseased branches so that the rest of the tree will continue to grow normally. These branches can only create issues later.

Crown cleaning makes the tree look much better, and it prevents limbs from rubbing together. And it is a safety practice that reduces the risk of falling branches, since healthy branches rarely fall.

Crown Restoration

Crown restoration is a focused pruning technique for trees that have been significantly damaged (either by pests or weather). It should only be performed by a certified arborist who knows how the tree is likely to grow over time and roughly just how long it’s restoration will take.

Unlike most other tree pruning services, crown restoration occurs throughout a longer time period with conservative trimming that reshapes the tree. Your arborist should have a plan to restore the tree, but also be flexible as the tree starts to grow and reshape on its own, working with the tree’s new growth pattern.

Vista Pruning

If you are striving for trees that help improve the overall beauty of your landscaping, you are probably interested in vista pruning. The purpose of vista pruning is to make the tree more aesthetically pleasing from a particular viewing point.

It entails many pruning techniques including crown thinning, crown cleaning and crown reduction – any technique that helps the trees look prettier. Remember, though, that an arborist is not going to compromise the health of a tree, so the primary focus of vista pruning is still to create strong, healthy trees.

Espalier Pruning

Espaliered trees are pruned heavily to grow flat against walls or a trellis. It is a unique style of tree pruning that is sure to attract a lot of attention to your landscape. Espalier pruning needs to begin when the tree is young and then continued very routinely during the tree’s life span.

Some of the benefits of espalier pruning include allowing maximum sunlight to get to the trees, as well as making it exceptionally easier to produce fruit.

Professional Tree Pruning in California

Tree pruning can be dangerous for a tree, your landscaping, and, of course, for you! CA Tree Trimming highly encourages professional tree pruning over attempting DIY.

Besides the dangers of tree trimming, you can do a lot of damage to a tree if you don’t trim it properly. Over-pruning is one of the most common mistakes made by homeowners maintaining their own trees.

Trees in California that get routine care from a professionals are usually much better off, and hiring a certified arborist from CA Tree Trimming to care for the trees on your property is a decision you won’t regret. Locate your town in our service area. We work with arborists across the entire state of California!

Planting a tree on your property has several benefits. Trees create summer shade, filter contaminated air and increase curb appeal. Everyone should plant trees.

Once full-grown, most trees are very simple to maintain: another benefit! They are hardy and tend to continue growing even with minimal care. However, if you want to help your trees achieve their potential, they need a little more effort.

Lack of care for young trees can lead to rotting, disease, under watering or pest problems.

Fortunately, tree care isn’t too complicated, but you do need a little information to do it correctly. Research the trees you plant in order to know what they need. Then care for them and watch them bloom.

Here, we’ll explain the five best tips on how to plant a new tree and seeing it thrive. You probably know the basics, so let’s dive a little deeper and lay out how to perform each step correctly.

Tree Care Tips for New Trees

These tips will not only keep trees alive, they’ll help them to grow much faster, stand up to damaging winds, fight off diseases ,insects and pests and create more leaves, buds or fruit.

Water Your Tree

New trees need a lot more water than older ones. The trees you plant on your property are no exception.

The root ball of the tree and the soil all around it need be kept moist, but don’t let it get too wet, because this can cause some of the roots to rot.

The general rule is 4-10 gallons of water per week. This includes rain water, and although it’s hard to get an exact reading, a rain gauge can help get you close enough to supplement the rest. Your new trees will need this much water every week for the first 2-3 growing seasons.

Mulch Around Your Trees

Mulch is more than an attractive landscaping product. It also helps protect new trees, especially the roots underground. But laying mulch the wrong way can sometimes cause rotting and decay – so much so, that the new tree will not survive.

Place mulch exactly 3 inches away from the tree trunk and spread it out to cover the ground under the longest horizontal limb. For brand new trees, this isn’t going to be very far, but as the tree continues to grow, your mulch area will also grow substantially.

Keep the mulch 2 to 4 inches thick in all areas around the tree. Be vigilant in keeping it spread out consistently and far enough away from the trunk of the tree so it does not stop air flow around the trunk.

Fertilize Around Your Tree

Fertilizer provides several nutrients that your soil may not have naturally. Most new trees benefit from fertilizing, but you have to use the right products and doing it at the right time in order for fertilizer to be most beneficial.

The perfect season to fertilize is early spring. Sometimes early summer provides good conditions (mild temperatures and wet soil), but don’t count on it.

If you are uncertain about which fertilizer to use, speak to a tree care professional for advice. Slow-release fertilizers are often a good idea because they feed your trees over a period of time rather than all at once.

Follow through with these things in the first few growing seasons after planting a tree, and then reevaluate your watering, mulching and fertilizing needs as the tree grows larger. As seasons go on, there will be tree care projects that are more important for your new trees.

Prune Your Tree

Tree trimming is very important – but very tricky – in the first years after planting a new tree. As the tree grows bigger, you may see several little branches take off, trying to become the tree’s trunk. While you may think this means that the tree is healthy and growing well, it can actually result in a weak tree in the future.

Early trimming helps to shape the tree into what it will look like when it is much larger. As little limbs emerge on the lower trunk, they have to be removed so they don’t pull water and nutrients away from the upper branches.

As long as there are trees growing somewhere on your property, they need to be trimmed regularly. When the trees get too big for you to prune them safely, you can count on CA Tree Trimming to do it for you.

Monitor Your Tree

Growing trees are at the highest risk for damage, disease and pest issues. But you’re never truly safe from these issues. As your tree gets larger, monitor it carefully for evidence of disease or poor nutrition, including the following:

• Leaf color changing out of season, with leaves turning brown or yellow
• Early leaf drop, regardless of whether these leaves look healthy or sick
• Wilting, even with proper watering
• Single branches dying
• Peeling bark

These signals likely mean a health issue. It is likely going to require professional care if your plan is to save the tree. A certified arborist can usually diagnose the issue by simply looking at your tree, although they will do testing whenever necessary.

If you identify the problem quick enough, you will probably be able to save the tree. Being proactive is the best course of action to protect your growing trees.

The tips above are basic yet effective. Don’t underestimate the value of the basics! When your new trees have proper care, combined with sunshine and barring any severe, damaging weather, the chances are in your favor that they will survive and look wonderful too!

Of course, you may already have a very busy schedule and don’t want to be responsible for these additional tasks. In some cases, homeowners don’t have the physical ability or the tools to give their growing trees the appropriate care.

No matter the situation, it’s a good idea to seek the help of a professional for caring for new trees. A certified arborist in California can advise you about the best course of care for each type of tree you plant on your property. They love sharing their expertise and skills with people planting brand new trees on their land, and they can be the difference between trees struggling and trees that thrive.

Call CA Tree Trimming now for information on routine tree maintenance in California – including tree trimming – for newer trees and old trees. A local tree service can determine the best plan for your trees! Locate your city in our service area here.