3 Vital Tree Care Steps That You May Be Neglecting

Do you own your own house? Are there one or more trees growing on the property? If you're like many people, you probably give little thought to your trees. They simply exist, and you occasionally admire them for their shade-giving properties. But while trees can stand to be ignored for a while, they aren't completely maintenance free. You don't need to trim them on a weekly basis like you have to do with your lawn, but there are still things that either you need to do or you need to hire someone else to do. The most important things on this list include:

Fertilize regularly: One of the most important aspects of tree care that you should be doing is to fertilize your trees regularly. This can sometimes be skipped depending on your soil type and the trees that you own, but fruit or nut trees should almost definitely be fertilized at least annually for optimum health. Different types of trees all have different nutrition requirements of course. So if you have a citrus tree and a nut tree, they will need different types of fertilizer at slightly different times of the year. If you've never fertilized your trees before, you may want to seek out professional guidance as to what type of fertilizer to use and exactly how much to add.

Water deeply: It's not uncommon to find someone with a sprinkler system that is set up to water once or twice a day for fifteen minutes each time. This may be fine for lawns but is going to be less than ideal for trees. Short watering times mean that the water doesn't have a chance to penetrate the ground very deeply As a result, this can encourage shallow tree root growth. If your tree's roots aren't sufficiently deep, a strong windstorm can knock it over without warning. As part of your tree care routine, use a soaker hose to irrigate the area around the tree for at least half an hour once or twice a week. This will encourage deeper root growth and a sturdier tree.

Annual pruning: No matter what type of tree you have, you should have a tree care professional come out to trim or prune it on a yearly or biennial basis. Pruning or trimming can remove parts of a tree that are unhealthy, damaged, or simply inconvenient. This results in a tree that is going to be healthier and stronger than it would have been without the pruning or trimming.

For more tips and help with tree care, contact a local tree service. 

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