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Archive for the ‘Damage’ Category
Friday, September 9th, 2011
 Don't Procrastinate on Tree Assessment The extreme soaking, wet weather this season has created problems with trees falling because their roots won’t hold in the saturated ground. The ground gets soft, trees lean, take up too much moisture to the crown – and topple.
Those falling trees come crashing down on roadways, houses, yards and power lines costing time and money that could have been avoided with a Tree Report. Wood Acres crews have been busy cleaning up the aftermath of trees suffering from too much water, wind or both.
Trees add to our enjoyment of the outdoors, improve the air we breathe and contribute to the value of our properties. However, trees also have liabilities associated with them. The key to reducing those liabilities is to recognize when a tree becomes hazardous and take the appropriate steps to correct or eliminate the hazard.
Our Certified Arborists provide a Tree Structure Evaluation/Risk Assessment Report. This report provides the following information: tree species, size, species failure profile, evaluation of location and site of tree, visual tree analysis, wood rot-decay analysis, risk rating, interpretation of evaluation and remedial treatments.
Don’t wait. Contact Wood Acres Tree Specialists – arborists that are fully licensed, insured and certified to take care of your trees.
Tags: arborists, failing trees, fallen tree limb, hurricane damage, leaning trees, Maryland, storm damage, tree and shrub specialists, tree doctor, tree report, uprooted trees, Washington DC
Posted in Damage, Storms, Tree & Shrub Care, Trees & Shrubs | Comments Off
Monday, August 29th, 2011
 Expert Tree Removal In the wake of Hurricane Irene, the Washington DC area remains littered with downed trees, limbs and branches. Wood Acres is busy helping with the cleanup. We’re sorry to say that many stately, old trees were destroyed. Fortunately, resulting injuries or deaths weren’t as many as feared in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene which struck this past weekend here.
Many people ask, “What if a neighbor’s tree fell on my property? It’s their tree, shouldn’t they be responsible for the cleanup and damage?”. The area jurisdictions are stating that toppled trees on private property would not be removed by the counties or the District and trees that have fallen on private property are the responsibility of the property owner.
If you have a toppled tree – whether yours or your neighbor’s – call your own insurance company and a private tree removal service, like Wood Acres Tree Specialists. The County’s Office of Consumer Protection advises homeowners to deal with established businesses only. Beware of out-of-the-area tree crews going door to door with chainsaws. Many are unlicensed and uninsured – and can cost you more money, more damage or personal liability if something goes wrong. Consumer Protection can be reached at 240-777-3636 if you have questions. Wood Acres Tree Specialists is licensed, insured, and certified for the most dangerous tree removals and undergoes rigorous safety training.
If a tree has fallen on power lines call the power company. If you smell gas or have a broken water main call your utility company.
- Do not touch fallen or low-hanging wires of any kind under any circumstances. Stay away from puddles with wires in or near them. Do not touch trees or other objects in contact with power lines.
- Call police or your utility companies immediately to report hazards such as downed power lines, broken gas or water mains or overturned gas tanks.
Hurricane season ends in November, so please hold onto your sandbags and our number for emergency tree service 1-888-464-3926 – just in case.
Tags: arborists, failing trees, fallen tree limb, hurricane damage, Maryland, storm damage, tree doctor, trees, uprooted trees, Washington DC
Posted in Damage, Storms, Trees & Shrubs | Comments Off
Thursday, July 7th, 2011
A tree-lined street with majestic branches arching into the open way is a beautiful sight – one of the reasons we love trees. Most of the time they are leaning towards the light because of nature, it’s called phototropism. But, sometimes the tree is leaning because it has a problem, or worse, it is failing and could be at risk in a storm. How can you tell the difference?
A leaning tree can be a distress signal that it has an inadequate root system or it could have a structural weakness.
Here’s what to look for in a leaning tree:
- a tree with an excessive lean
- roots that look like they’ve recently pushed the dirt up around the base or cracks in the dirt
- horizontal cracks on the tension side and bark buckling on the lower side
- a crack through the middle of the stem
- crack, canker, or decay on the lower stem
- tree with girdling roots around 40% or more of the root collar
- more than ⅓ of the roots decayed or missing
For a thorough, professional evaluation or your leaning tree, contact Wood Acres’ professional arborists. Make sure it keeps its place as an element of beauty in your landscape. We are your source for tree answers and arborist services in Montgomery County, MD and Washington DC.
Tags: arborists, failing trees, leaning trees, Maryland, tree and shrub specialists, Washington DC
Posted in Damage, Storms, Trees & Shrubs | Comments Off
Saturday, January 8th, 2011
 Winter Weight on Trees and Shrub With the cold, snowy weather upon us in Maryland and Washington, DC, Wood Acres starts receiving calls from customers concerned about splitting or fallen trees. (Memories of the 2010 Snowmageddon are still fresh) Some species are definitely more susceptible to the added weight of ice and snow more than others.
Previously we discussed the white pine problem – fast-growing trees favored by unknowing homeowners who want quick shade but instead end up with a brittle monster prone to breakage in storms. The white pine often develops weak, v-shaped crotches that easily split apart under heavy participation and high winds.
Besides avoiding fast-growers in the landscape you take care with multiple leader trees and conifers. Multiple leader, upright evergreens, like arborvitae and juniper, and multiple leader or clump trees, such as birch, are most subject to snow and ice damage. Smaller trees need to be wrapped and larger trees with wide-spreading leaders should be cabled.
TIP: You can secure your smaller multiple leader trees with strips of carpet, strong cloth or nylon stockings two-thirds of the way above the weak crotches. You can also connect large Bungee Cords (elastic ropes with hooks on either end) at the hardware (make sure it’s supportive but not too tight). Remove the wrappings during spring to avoid binding new growth and girdling limbs and trunk.
Wood Acres Tree Specialists provide professional cabling/bracing services to protect your trees and shrubs. To have a healthy, intact landscape next Spring make sure to contact our certified arborists before your weak tree or bush becomes permanently damaged or downed in a winter storm.
Tags: arborists, ice damage, Maryland, snow damage, storm damage, tree and shrub specialists, trees, Washington DC
Posted in Cabling & Bracing, Damage, Storms, Trees & Shrubs | Comments Off
Friday, October 1st, 2010
 Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Discovered in Allentown, PA in 1996, this insect has now made its home in over 25 States. It was quite prevalent early this spring, and then the unusually dry, hot weather must have helped propel it straight up the charts to #1 on our 2010 INSECT chart.
Reddish brown-black nymphs hatch from light-green eggs laid on either upper or lower leaf surfaces. After 5 nymphal stages, they become long shield-shaped brown adults with white markings on the hind end. If you want to see the adults just look around your house. They are sneaking in for the winter.
Pesticides don’t really work and wouldn’t last more than a few days to a week. Homeowners should concentrate on caulking and replacing screens to seal up those entranceways (good for saving energy, too) – as they enter through any crack they can find. Or, just get used to these relatively harmless insects – they don’t bite. It is true that when you crush a stink bug, they release a pheremone (that some say smells like stinky feet) that attracts even more stink bugs. It is better to help them find their way back outdoors without squeezing them and getting more pheremone in the air.
This year, “Cat-Facing” feeding damage from its sucking mouthparts has been noted on fruit trees and vegetable crops, affecting crop quality. Feeding on hundreds of hosts- the actual amount of damage caused by this feeding varies and the long-term effects of feeding on things like tree trunks is not well known.
So if you see a “Stink Bug”, don’t squash it or you’ll unfortunately find out how it got it’s name. Read more about it in our insect database at Wood Acres Tree Specialists.
Tags: brown marmorated stink bug, bugs, insects, Maryland, pests, stink bugs, tree and shrub specialists, trees, Washington DC
Posted in Damage, Insects, Tree & Shrub Care | Comments Off
Friday, August 6th, 2010
 Wood Acres Tree Specialists recently received information from Wayne Knoll, City Forester of Rockville, MD. He was discussing the recent severe storms that had downed so many deciduous trees in his area of management and made an interesting observation:
According to Mr. Knoll,Rockville has approximately 28,000 street trees on 160 miles of street. His current budget allows for pruning all streets on about a 12-year cycle. During the February storm events, his office received approximately 200 reports of tree or limb failures. (Many of these failures were associated with evergreen trees, mostly white pine, in parks and on landscaped berms adjacent to major roadways. Since evergreens are more prone to failure due to excessive snowfall whether or not they have been recently pruned, he excluded these from his data). All trees listed below are deciduous street trees of various species and size. The majority of the failures were on maple species.
Of the 200+ tree related calls we received, 114 were for deciduous trees located in the City right-of-way along neighborhood streets. The vast majority of these were for partial tree failure with only a few whole tree failures.
- Street trees that received routine maintenance pruning within the past five years incurred 19 of the known failures.
- Street trees that have not received routine maintenance pruning for at least 6 years incurred 95 of the known failures.
Thus, 84% of the reported damage occurred on trees that have not received routine maintenance pruning for six or more years.
So, if you would like to significantly reduce your property’s tree failures during storm events, thus saving time, money and reducing liability talk to us about regular maintenance for your trees – and keep them beautiful longer.
Tags: Maryland, storm damage, stress, trees, Washington DC
Posted in Damage, Pruning, Tree & Shrub Care | Comments Off
Sunday, July 25th, 2010
 Credits (left to right) Lacy L. Hyche, Auburn University, Bugwood.org John H. Ghent, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org Terry Price, Georgia Forestry Commission, Bugwood.org
What is my shrub dying and what are those “pinecone” things hanging from the branches? We hear that a lot in this area, especially in this extreme heat when your trees are already in a stressed state.
If you do see bags made out of needles or leaves on a woody plant that is defoliated the chances are you have bagworms. Bagworm caterpillars make distinctive 1.5 to 2 inch long spindle-shaped bags that can be seen hanging from twigs of a variety of trees and shrubs.
Bagworms prefer juniper, arborvitae, spruce, pine, and cedar but also attack deciduous trees. Female moths cannot fly but the larvae can disperse. Very small caterpillars can spin strands of silk and be carried by wind, an activity called “ballooning”. Larger larvae may crawl to adjacent plants.
Bagworms pass the winter as eggs (300 or more) inside bags that served as cocoons for last year’s females. The eggs hatch and the tiny larvae crawl out to feed. Each uses silk and bits of plant material to make a small bag that protects and camouflages it as during feeding and growth.
Bagworm caterpillars feed for about six weeks, enlarging the bag as they grow and withdrawing into it when disturbed. Older larvae strip evergreens of their needles and devour whole leaves of susceptible deciduous species leaving only the larger veins. When abundant, the caterpillars can defoliate plants.
Heavy infestations over several consecutive years, especially when coupled with other stresses, can lead to plant death.
Should you see these telltale bags hanging on your trees or shrubs, please call Wood Acres Tree Specialists to assess and treat the damage before the stressed plant can’t recover -or its natural form and beauty is ruined for years.
Tags: bagworms, conifers, drought, stress
Posted in Damage, Insects, Tree & Shrub Care, Trees & Shrubs | Comments Off
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