Committing Arborcide

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Committing Arborcide

• By Dr. Treevorkian
• Special Thanks to Prof. Jim Chatfield,
• Dept. Plant Pathology, Ohio State Univ.

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1. Wrong Tree, Wrong Place

• Pines in swamps?
• Shade trees under power lines.
• Any tree placed where it will be damaged by
  future human activities.
• Road salts, trenching, modifications to the
  landscape.

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2. Plant Pestiferous Trees

• Cottonwoods, aspen, poplars, and willows
• Pest heavens.
• Flowering trees such as crabapples
• Fireblight, aphids, scales.

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3. Change the Grade

• Management by D-9 dozer.
• Grade changes of as little as four inches (4)
  can affect soil atmospheres and root health.

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4. Squeeze Me In!

• Little trees become big trees.
• Gotta have instant screening, so over-plant with
  too many trees in too little space.
• Dont tree roots only go straight down?

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5. pHooey!

• Soil pH can have a long term impact on trees.
• Our soils are typically alkaline.
• Hard to correct with anything other than good,
  deep soil amendments.
• Soil tests are cheap compared to installation and
  maintenance costs.

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Making your pHooey worse with mulch volcanoes
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6. Salts are the spice of death Season until
well-done.

• Roadway de-icing salts.
• Sidewalk ice control.
• Fertilizers are typically a form of salts.
• Healthy lawns at the expense of sickly trees.

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Dont forget

• Better Living Through Chemistry
• Add herbicides,
• Add de-icing chemicals,
• Add fertilizer,
• Add doggy-doo,
• Yummmm!

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7. Tree Topping

• Just plain wrong!
• Allows introduction of decay to the main trunk.
• Prevents sound healing of tree wounds.

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Tree Butchers at work
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8. Girdles R Us

• Girdling roots caused by
• Poor nursery practices.
• Improper planting depth
• Girdling by old tree staking wires, bird feeders,
  dog chains, etc.

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9. Is your yard a clay pot?

• Our area- heavy clay soils
• Low oxygen levels.
• Easy to saturate and over-water.
• Do a simple clay pot test
• Take a small sample in your hand, wet slightly
  and roll into a ball (pot). And trees are
  suppose to grow in this?

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Rootball/Soil Interface issue in heavy, clay soil.
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10. Death Eating a Cracker

• Not enough water.
• Too much water.
• Over-mulching.
• Relying on automatic sprinklers to provide the
  right balance.

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How do these trees get water?
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Soggy Crackers
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Even Soggier Crackers
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Special thanks to

• Prof. Jim Chatfield, OSU., Dr. Treevorkians
  Ten Step Process to Tree Decline, Tree Care
  Industry Magazine, Feb. 2009.
• Roxborough Water and Sanitation District

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Planting and Tree Care for Roxborough Park

• Keith Worley, Forester
• ISA Certified Arborist

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Where We Live

• High elevation at the edge of Mountains and
  Plains.
• Harsh climates with
• High winds.
• Drought periods and watering restrictions.
• Intense solar radiation.
• Dry winters.
• USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 4

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Why you want to plant a tree?

• Shade
• Screening
• Energy Conservation
• Beauty
• Wildlife

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Finding the right spot

• Allow room for full growth at maturity.
• Follow soils and engineering reports for your
  property to protect your foundation.
• Avoid conflicts with future uses such as
  utilities, lawn area, and blocking of views.
• Remember the future trunk flare and its
  relationship to concrete surfaces and fences.

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Soils- Mother Earth

• Heavy clays are tough on trees
• Shallow rooting and conflicts with turf.
• Do not allow for good soil atmospheres with good
  oxygen content.
• Prone to uprooting in high winds and heavy snow
  loads.
• Prone to compaction with heavy use.

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Soil Amendments

• Incorporate organic material 12-18 inches deep
  and well beyond the drip line.
• Use well aged compost.
• Do not use horse manure- too hot with salts!
• 3 cubic yards per 1,000 square feet.

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Buying Trees

• Look for
• A central leader or main trunk.
• Root Collar at or slightly above ground level of
  the root ball.
• Avoid
• Trees with multiple stems and no dominant leader.
• Plants with circling roots.

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Remember

• The fullest looking tree is not necessarily the
  best tree.
• A tree with a strong central leader will tolerate
  wind and snow.

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Best Trees for our area

• Conifers
• Ponderosa Pine, Austrian Pine, White Fir,
  Douglas-fir.
• Deciduous
• Oaks, Honey locusts, Kentucky Coffee Tree,
  Hackberry, Linden, Norway Maple.
• Refer to Recommended Trees For Colorado Front
  Range Communities and Trees and Shrubs for
  Mountain Areas

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Planting Tips

• Dig wide planting holes- not deep.
• Do not dig deeper than intended planting depth so
  tree will not settle.
• Plant 2-4 inches above surrounding grade.
• Mulch well beyond drip line with 2-3 inches of
  mulch.
• Water deeply and infrequently.

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Remove!

• All twine, rope and wire from around the tree.
• Remove any wire baskets on the upper 2/3rd of the
  root ball after it is placed in the planting
  hole.
• Remove all burlap from around or on top of the
  root ball.

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Staking and guying

• Stake low on the tree.
• Remove after the first year. Do not leave
  staking on any tree for more than two years.
• Use webbing or old carpet strips.
• Do not place wire or string around the trunk.
• Do not use any type of hose.

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Watering Reminder

• Deep, infrequent watering is best for good root
  development and prevention of drought stress.
• Check regularly with soil probe.
• Turf watering and tree watering are not the same
  thing!
• Allow periodic drying of the root zone to allow
  oxygen back into the soil.

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Tree Watering with drip systems

• Provide emitters to areas outside the root ball.
• Check regularly to make sure they are working.
• Make sure they are all on a separate zone so it
  can provide DEEP, INFREQUENT watering.
• Frequent, shallow watering promotes poor root
  development and does not promote drought
  tolerance.

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Mulching

• Start at 0 depth at the trunk or root collar.
• 2-3 of mulch is enough.
• Do not use more than 4.
• Do not put mulch volcanoes around the tree.

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Mulch wide- Not deep!
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Weed Barriers/Fabrics

• Please, do not use them!
• No soil is ever built at the mulch/soil
  interface.
• Do not allow for good air exchange.

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Pruning

• Learn to make proper pruning cuts.
• Look for the branch collar and branch bark ridge.
• Train trees when young to avoid large cuts as the
  tree matures.
• Remove dead, dying, diseased and deformed
  branches.

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Monitor regularly for

• Watering
• Over watering
• Insect pests
• Aphids and spider mites
• Scales
• Defoliators
• Diseases like fire blight
• Bark Beetles (Ips, Mtn. Pine Beetle, etc.)

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Contact your local ISA Certified Arborist

• Trained in proper tree care practices.
• Up-to-date on current pests in the area.
• Trained in Abiotic disorders.
• www.isarmc.org
• www.isa-arbor.com
• www.treesaregood.com