| Arborist Tips of the Month June 2008 |
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Greetings!
Total Tree Care arborists are delighted to have this opportunity to share their knowledge and experience with you every month. |
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 An Active Season for Lightning
Obvious to all, the weather pattern for this spring and early summer has been extremely active. The number of severe thunderstorms far exceeds our seasonal average. Storms have been highly charged leading to some impressive strikes.
I've been asked to advise on tree damage caused by lightning strikes and would like to share information about a Positive High Voltage (hot bolt) Strike, which can be devastating. Only 5% of all strikes fall into this category, but trees can literally be blown apart. Their temperature can be as high as 54,000 degrees Fahrenheit and can travel up to 4 miles per second. The sudden heating of the air to 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit [2 times our sun's surface temperature] creates a thunderous shock wave. A typical hot bolt strike consists of 3-4 strokes causing a strobe-like effect. "Hot Bolts" are 10 times stronger than an ordinary lightning bolt and can last 10 times longer. They outrun the storm by 10's of miles, hence a bolt from the blue.
Although most trees will survive a small to moderate strike they should be examined by a well trained arborist. If you are interested in lightning protection for a specimen tree, Total Tree Care has expertise to perform this service for you. Contact us for a complimentary consultation.___________________________________________________________________ |
 
Mike Kennedy Tip of the Month
 Plant Diversification in the Landscape
When planting trees and shrubs always consider plant diversity. A major loss would occur if your landscape contains a high percentage of a particular type of tree to which a new insect or disease is attracted.
For example, the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid insect has devastated thousands of hemlocks in Connecticut alone. Fortunately, this insect can be treated. Dutch Elm Disease is a fungal disease carried by the elm bark beetle. Chestnut Blight is a fungal disease that affects the American Chestnut Tree.
The Plant Diversification Guide by Frank Santamour, Jr. of the U.S. National Arboretum provides tips to lessen the chance of a major tree loss in your landscape due to pests similar to those noted above [and at the same time will beautify your property].
Trees in your landscape should include no more than:
30% within the same family, ex. Fagaceae (beech, chinkapins & oaks)
20% in the same genus, ex. Quercus (oaks)
10% of the same species, ex. Quercus alba (white oak)
So, in this particular case no more than 10% of the trees in your landscape should be white oaks.
The next time you are modifying your landscape, be sure to keep diversity in mind - you will be happy you did.
Be well - Mike |
Trees Benefit from Mulching
Mulching reduces stress by providing a stable root environment so that during the growing season the root system remains cooler and contains more moisture than the surrounding soil. Mulch prevents mechanical damage by diverting lawn mowers and trimmers away from the tree's base. Proper mulching reduces competition from surrounding weeds and turf and provides valuable organic matter for the plant's root system.
An organic mulch layer (2 - 4 inches deep) of loosely packed shredded leaves, pine straw, peat moss, or composted wood chips should cover the entire root system. If the area and activities happening around the tree do not permit the entire area to be mulched, you should mulch as much of the area under the drip line of the tree as possible. Do not cover the actual trunk of the tree. This mulch-free area, 1 - 2 inches wide at the base, is sufficient to avoid moist bark conditions and prevent trunk decay.
Plastic should not be used beneath the mulch because it interferes with the exchange of gases between soil and air, which inhibits root growth. Thicker mulch layers, 5 - 6 inches deep or greater, may also inhibit gas exchange.
Contact us and we will introduce you to our best-in-class landscape mulch partner, who helps customers achieve their goal for healthy and beautiful trees. |
 What Happened to all of the Sycamore Trees this Spring? Connecticut's large American Sycamore trees have been ravaged this spring evidenced by their minimal foliage. Although just beginning to sprout new leaves, they still look barren of foliage.
Their cousins, the European Sycamore or London Plane Tree, appear to be doing just fine. Why is one species of large native trees suffering so much while others are virtually unaffected? The reason is that American Sycamore trees (and some other native species) never established a strong defense against the leaf and twig blight fungus known as Anthracnose or Deuteromycotina, Coleomycetes.
Anthracnose is usually not life threatening since it affects trees early in the growing season and most are able to produce enough new foliage to support their life processes. However, this disease can be one of many stresses that add up to the long term demise of a tree even though it is generally not the sole reason for a tree's mortality.
For additional information on Anthracnose and some cultural practices you can implement to reduce its effect, click here | |
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I hope you find this information useful as you care for your trees. Tell me about specific areas of interest that you'd like us to discuss in a future report. |
 Sincerely,Mike Toth
203-718-1043 |
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