This is a portion of an
article written in February ‘05 for the Hull Massachusetts Garden Club by Julie
McIntosh Shapiro. It is printed here
with the author’s permission. It is a
long article, so it will be presented in several segments.
Well, did anybody have to
sharpen his or her snow shovel the past three weeks? Yikes. In some places in
our area, trees were covered from stem to stern with snow pack. We really got
blasted. But our bulbs and perennials are fast asleep under it all, not phased
in the least. The best I can figure is that we received about 24-40” of snow in
about three days.
While you’re looking out your
windows, now might be a great time to examine the trees on your property and
those close by, to see if any have suffered damage from the latest winter
storm. Mario Vaden, an Oregon state arborist checks in with us with his list of
things to look for in a dangerous or hazardous tree:
1. MULTIPLE LEADERS OR
TRUNKS.
Many trees have multiple
leaders, like trunks. Many times, the union of these, where they connect, are
weak 'V' shaped unions. These could allow the tree to split down the middle
like two people pulling on a wishbone. There are remedies for conditions like
this.
2. LEANING TRUNK POSITION.
Check to see if your tree's
trunk has moved from a vertical position to a leaning position recently. Or,
was it leaning before, but more now. Gaps and fissures in the soil near the
trunk may be a result of the root system pulling loose. Some healthy trees will
lean a little regardless, like the ones at the edge of a grove, leaning for
light.
3. WEAK LIMBS OR BRANCHES.
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