What to do about storm-damaged trees
Ice and wind can do a number on your trees. It doesn’t have to be the end, and more importantly do not top the tree.
I was stuck at home today as ice and snow caused some serious problems on our streets, and I began to wonder what to do about the frozen dogwood in my frontyard. A couple of windstorms last year put thousands of trees in our state under severe stress (if they managed to survive) and a couple of freezing spells this year has been crippling.
State conservation and forestry departments have been inundated with residents wanting to know, “What to do with the trees?” Most utterred words: “Don’t top it.” Topping the tree or over pruning it may cause irreperable damage. Prune only the damaged portions as long as it is less than 50% of the tree. If done correctly, you may not even notice the damage.
A damaged tree has to establish new branches, new buds, and then new leaves. It may not have enough reserve energy to accomplish this over a wide area. The tree will be susceptible to disease and infection.
Determine if the tree can recover or if the damage is too severe to save it. If the split is at the end of a limb or at the trunk near the top of the tree, it may not be much of an issue. However, if the split leads to a large break in the main stem of the tree or deep into the trunk, recovery may be impossible.
Don’t paint or tar the wound. Be patient and prune “lightly.” Damaged trees won’t “bleed” to death and can be corrected during the warmth of late spring and summer months. Contact a knowledgeable arborist to examine and assist in pruning trees or downing unsafe or unrecoverable trees.
Some hardwoods and evergreens can survive heavey pruning and damage but are slow to recover. Softer woods such as poplar, some maples, and elms are prone to breaks and a hard to salvage even if they lose just a few limbs. They grow much faster than hardwoods and it may make sense to replace them. The best defense against winter damage, though, is proper pruning and maintaining a healthy tree before a storm hits.
