Last summer, I had the opportunity to introduce our field staff to the practice of yoga. In heavy work boots and on a hard concrete floor, we made our way through Triangle Pose, Downward Facing Dog, and even a few Sun Salutations. Practicing yoga for 20 years and teaching it for the last 10, I’ve learned that the stretches and postures of yoga can help keep the joints and soft tissues of our body, like muscles and tendons, healthy and functional. Tree care consists of many tasks that are demanding on the physical body, and yoga is a great way to address tightness in areas like the neck and shoulders, hips and lower back, and even the hands and wrists. This can lead to greater mobility and functional movement when lifting heavy wood or climbing a tree. We now have a regular morning yoga practice at Russell Tree Experts(with mats!), every Tuesday and Thursday before the crews begin their day. Even our mechanics and office staff join in.
This combination of yoga and trees got me thinking back to a significant winter earlier in my career as an arborist. On December 22nd, 2004, Columbus was hit with a nasty winter storm. I was living far enough north of the city at the time that I saw nothing but snow at my home. Columbus, however, received a devastating combination of snow and ice. I was an ill-equipped new homeowner, so after hand-shoveling my 350ft gravel driveway (oh, to be 23 again…), I made my way to work and was in disbelief over what I saw. Because of the heavy ice accumulation, there were trees and limbs down in practically every yard. Many white pines and siberian elms had literally been stripped of every limb and left to look like totems or coat racks. There were also river birch and arborvitae bent over so much (but not broken) that their tops were touching and frozen to the ground. What is typically a slower time of year in the tree care industry proved to be very busy, and day after day of cleanup carried us straight into spring.
That winter provided me with valuable insight into the strengths and weaknesses of trees. Some types of trees with stiffer wood fibers didn’t fare as well, while others that had the ability to bend, but not break, held up much better under heavy loads. Many of those river birch and arborvitae that I mentioned righted themselves by mid-spring and were able to be preserved.
So what does all of this have to do with proper tree care? We obviously cannot change the inherent nature of a tree’s wood fibers and make them bend more or bend less. Nor can we prevent major weather events. But, we can proactively address existing weaknesses in a tree, and we can also ensure that pruning is performed properly, so as not to create a vulnerability that otherwise wouldn't have existed. Just like yoga can help us avoid injury or illness by keeping our bodies flexible and healthy, proper tree care can do the same for our trees. Here are a few examples:
Removing large cracked/broken limbs
These limbs are obvious hazards to targets like homes and pedestrians if they fall out of the tree, but they can also do additional damage to the tree itself. A structurally unsound limb, if left in the tree, can place unwanted stress on otherwise healthy limbs if it breaks but doesn’t fall out completely. Eliminating these defective parts of a tree allows the rest of the canopy to structurally function at its best.
Making proper pruning cuts
When pruning cuts are made correctly, a healthy tree will compartmentalize and attempt to close off the wound that was created. This helps to prevent decay of the woody portion of a limb or trunk that gives a tree its strength. Improper cuts don’t close up correctly and can become areas where decay eventually spreads into the tree. This greatly increases the risk of failure or breaking when forces like wind or ice act upon that part of the tree.
Avoiding “Lion’s Tailing”
This is a term used to describe the improper pruning of a tree where all the lateral branches have been removed from the larger limbs, leaving each of those limbs with brush only at the ends and looking like “lion’s tails”. Aside from aesthetically ruining a tree, this improper method of pruning can actually concentrate forces like wind or added weight at the point of attachment, rather than distributing it throughout the length of the limb. In high winds especially, this can lead to an increased risk of failure.
Minimize staking of new trees
This one has more to do with proper tree planting than it does with proper care of established trees, but it’s worthy of mentioning. Young trees will actually develop stronger roots and wood fibers in response to forces placed upon them. A newly planted tree needs to get “thrown around” a bit in the wind in order to properly establish and “bend” with future stressors rather than “break”(or blow over in this case). Staking a tree, especially beyond the first year, provides an artificial system of support that the tree will come to rely on for as long as it’s in place. Think of it as “tough love” for young trees.
These are just a few key examples of how proper tree care gives our trees a chance to thrive, adding function and value to our landscapes. Prevention is the best medicine - we know this to be true for ourselves, and it’s equally true for our trees.
Were you in Columbus for the winter ice storm of 2004? Leave your stories and experiences of that winter in the comments below. Or do you have a yoga practice and appreciate the strength that comes with flexibility? Share your thoughts with us.
For now, I’m going to work on getting my Oak to try something other than Tree Pose.
Walter Reins | Regional Manager, Russell Tree Experts
Walter has been an ISA Certified Arborist since 2003. He graduated from Montgomery College in Maryland with a degree in Landscape Horticulture, and has called Columbus, OH his home for nearly 20 years. Walter appreciates trees for their majesty and the critical role they play in our world.