HK retires from the cross season

read this honorary tribute, thanks Keith
http://crossbabble.blogspot.com/2009/11/henry-kramer-retires-from-racing.html

Why Do Tree Limbs Break?

Why Limbs Fall in Your Yard

Travel around a leafy neighborhood after a storm and you will see tree limbs, large and small, scattered about the ground. Why do some limbs fall in high winds or after ice storms while others merely bend? Should you worry about that large limb overhanging your driveway?

“One reason trees fail is weak branch unions,” says Peter Gerstenberger, senior advisor for safety, standards and compliance with the Tree Care Industry Association. “Homeowners can educate themselves about tree limbs, but they should call a professional arborist if they are worried about an overhanging branch.”

Trees may suffer from naturally formed imperfections that can lead to branch failure at the union of the branch and main stem. There are two types imperfections that create weak unions: a branch union with included bark, and an epicormic branch.

Weak Unions

Branch unions can be characterized as strong or weak. Strong branch unions have upturned branch bark ridges at branch junctions. Annual rings of wood from the branch grow together with annual rings of wood from the stem, creating a sound, strong union all the way into the center of the tree.

A weak branch union occurs when a branch and stem (or two or more co-dominant stems) grow so closely together that bark grows between them, inside the tree. The term for bark growing inside the tree is “included bark.” As more and more bark is included inside the tree, the weak union is formed that is more likely to fail.

In storm damage surveys conducted by the University of Minnesota ’s Forest Resources Department, 21 percent of all landscape trees that failed in windstorms failed at weak branch unions of co-dominant stems. Some species are notorious for having included bark: European mountain ash, green ash, hackberry, boxelder, willow, red maple, silver maple, Amur maple, cherry and littleleaf linden.

Epicormic Branches

Epicormic branches (also called water sprouts) are formed as a response to injury or environmental stress. Epicormic branches are new branches that replaced injured, pruned or declining branches. Commonly, epicormic branches form on the stems and branches of topped trees. When old, large epicormic branches are growing on decaying stems or branches, the epicormics are very likely to fail.

Epicormic branches, by their very nature, form weak unions because they are shallowly attached instead of being attached all the way to the center of the stem. Epicormic branches grow very quickly so they become heavy very quickly. After a time they lose their connection to the main branch and may fall to the ground because the underlying wood cannot support their weight.

If a weak union is also cracked, cankered or decayed, the union is likely to fail, causing the branch to fall off the tree. Sometimes, ridges of bark and wood will form on one or both sides of a weakened branch union in order to stabilize the union. The branch is very likely to fail when a crack forms between the ridges.

Econo saves Cat stuck in tree four days

trees do amazing things

More Storm Damage Pictures

This massive oak came down during the storm last week - this tree was also home to a large beehive that had quite a bit of natural honey.

Fertilizing Trees

Should I fertilize my trees?

Trees often require fertilization at some point in their life span. Remember, most trees' natural environment is the forest. There nutrients are continually recycled as leaves and other plants, and even animal material, fall and decompose on the forest floor. When you put a tree in a landscape setting it is usually deprived of these nutrients.

One thing you can do is try to recreate the tree’s natural environment by providing mulch rings. (See Mulching.) Most people, however, will not be able to mulch their whole yard! Fertilization is needed by many trees to replace the nutrients they are missing.

Like any other landscape plants, shade trees will respond to fertilization. Most shade trees exist in nature without much care, but transplanting trees into urban areas or man-made conditions can create problems. Often these trees will be growing in restricted root zone areas, be surrounded by pavement or compacted soil or even be physically damaged by construction activities. One should realize that the root system is just as important (and delicate) as the above ground parts. Fertilizer alone will not improve the health of a tree stressed by one of these environmental conditions. Fertilizer is only one factor in the complex formula of plant requirements. Here’s how to detect if your tree needs fertilizing. Symptoms of a nutrient deficient tree include:

• a slow rate and low amount of annual growth on twigs and trunk,
• smaller than normal foliage,
• off-color foliage,
• increased numbers of dead branches,
• tip-die back in branches,
• and increased rates of disease and insect problems.

Trees that possess these symptoms generally would respond to a fertilization treatment. One should make sure that nutrients (or lack of) are the problem before fertilizing. Other common tree disorders to be aware of in urban areas would include poor planting techniques, moisture problems, construction damage, girdling roots, or utility leaks from a natural gas line or sewer line.

How does the arborist determine when to fertilize? Why does my tree need a soil test?

Arborists have a number of tools at their disposal. The best is the arborist’s knowledge of local soil and environmental conditions. The arborist may be able to make a fertilization recommendation simply by examining your tree and yard. This saves the client time and money. On other occasions the problem may be more complex and the arborist will recommend a soil and/or foliar analysis to determine the problem.

Your arborist does know that most shade trees growing in landscape settings will need nitrogen. Nitrogen is not stable in the soil. It is easily washed away by water and may periodically need to be replaced.

More information is also on our website!

Storm Damage

The latest storm did some real damage. This tree should of been removed years ago.