Expert Tree Care... It's In Our Roots.

Planting the Correct Tree in the Correct Place

 

A tree can, if planted correctly, have a life that spans multiple generations of property ownership.  In order to ensure the greatest chance of longevity and vitality, a few simple questions should be considered before a tree selection is made:

 

• What is the purpose of the tree being considered? A property owner should always account for the purpose of planting a particular tree in a particular location.  Some options to be evaluated when considering the above questions would be; aesthetic value, property privacy, home/property shading, windbreak/wind protection, home energy cost reduction, etc.  Some trees, by their specific genetic nature, better meet the demands of the categorical consideration over others.
   

• ​What are the specifications of the Hardiness Zone requirements of the property? Not all trees can flourish in all climates; being aware of the Hardiness Zone Number assigned to the property’s area is extremely important.
   

• ​What is the rate of growth for a specific tree selection? A property owner should be aware that some tree selection might be too large – as these tree species move their way through their life-cycle – to be suitable for a more confined area.
   

• ​What sun exposure is demanded by the tree being considered for selection? Being aware of the site location’s sun exposure is important not only to the vitality of the tree, but to the tree’s survival; some species are better suited to shade, while other selections thrive in full sun.
   

• ​What are the conditions of the soil at the site being considered for the planting of the selected tree? Some trees are better suited for acidic soil, while other tree selections prefer a neutral/alkaline soil.

 

Emerald Ash Borer

 

The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is invasive to the state Ohio. Originating in Asia, the Emerald Ash Borer was first identified in the state in 2003.  With the state’s Ash population at around 3.8 Billion trees, Ohio is extremely susceptible to a catastrophic tree loss.

 

The Emerald Ash Borer (EAB), having infested a tree, kills it within three to five years. The adult insect is dark metallic green, approximately a half inch in length.  The adult will emerge from the trunk/bark by way of a D-shaped hole in the spring.  Signs of infection can be dieback in the top one-third of the canopy, severe discoloration of the bark, sprouts growing from roots/trunk, D-shaped hole(s) in the trunk/bark, and/or bark loss.

 

Removal of infected/dying tree is no longer the only option.  Wright’s Tree Service has several treatments available; if the infection is caught in a timely manner and treatment is started as quickly as possible, these treatments have success rates as high as ninety nine percent.

 

 

Oak Wilt

 

Oak Wilt is a serious, but often preventable fungal disease that is caused by the pathogen Ceratocystis Fagacearum which can be found within the majority of the eighty eight counties in Ohio.  The fungus has been discovered to travel from diseased trees to healthy trees by two distinct means of contamination; the fungus can be transmitted as fungal spores hitching a ride on the feet of specific kinds of beetles or by a process of cross contamination between the root system interconnectivity of a healthy oak and a diseased oak. Once the fungus has infected the tree, the fungus plugs the water conductive vessels (the sapwood) leading to withering of leaves (browning at the outermost ends and working inward) within the upper canopy of the tree. Without an expert evaluation, this situation can appear to closely resemble a tree in the throes of leaf scorch or sever moisture stress. 

 

All oak trees are susceptible to infection; red-black oaks (black, blackjack, pin, northern/southern red, shingle, and shumard oak) show a quicker sign of decline – leading to death – while white oaks (bur, chinquapin, post, swamp white, and white) appear to be more tolerant of the fungal contamination, surviving for a year or two longer than the red oaks.

 

Prevention of Oak Wilt is possible when one considers a multipronged approach to the options available in mitigating the contamination of healthy trees.  Knowing that most (90%) of the contamination of healthy oaks by diseased oaks comes from the interconnectivity of root systems, professional arborists – working in urban areas and lacking the ease of means to perform the necessary root trenching to separate diseased oaks from healthy oaks – have been proactive in  preventative approaches in protection…  By suspending oak trimming during the carrier beetles’ active months (June through August) and the expert use of the fungicide (Propiconazole), arborists around the state have been successful in the protection of oaks from Oak Wilt.