Lafayette Tree Service Bringing Sexy Back Into Your Yards

Tag: Orinda Tree Removal

Posted on

Is It Time To Get That Stump Removed?

Alamo Tree Removal

Tree stumps bring with them no benefits and plenty of risks. For many reasons, you should consider getting the tree stump removed from your yard.

When To Remove A Stump

Tree stumps can be physically removed at any time. Having an arborist remove the stump when felling the tree is the most convenient way to remove a stump. But they can still be removed at any time, if you’ve missed that opportunity. So why do it now?

5 Reasons Getting Your Tree Stump Removed is Important

Tree Stumps Are Hazardous

Stumps left on your property are far below eye level, and often blend into the landscape quite well. They can be a danger to children, neighbors, or visitors as a tripping hazard. They’ll also cost you money if you or your mowing service accidentally hits the stump when mowing your lawn, requiring a trip to the repair shop. Tree stumps create a liability on your property.

Curb Appeal

Whatever else tree stumps are, they’re certainly not pretty. They look the opposite of alive and healthy, which is how you want your landscape to look. Removing your stump means getting rid of an eyesore- your property will look better, and your neighbors will thank you.

Fresh Tree Stumps Cause Unsightly Re-Growth

When some species of trees are cut down close to or just above grade, they continue to generate sucker growth from the stump. If this happens you could spend time and money cutting down the suckers or spraying them with herbicides.

These suckers also take precious nutrients from the soil, and other parts of your landscape may suffer. If left to grow, these re-growing trees turn into ugly bushes. They won’t look like their former, proper form. These suckers are also poorly connected to their rotating trunk and can even become a safety hazard later if left be.

Stumps Attract Bugs

An old stump sitting in your backyard is like a readymade home for all sorts of insects. And they often attract white ants or termites, which could mean risking the safety of your home. The most worrying of these is probably termites. They’re drawn to exposed wood and will set up a colony in your stump. From there, it’s an easy trip to your house, and you do not want that. Even if your old stump doesn’t attract termites, it could attract other lawn pests, so you’re better off bidding it goodbye.

Space

In a garden bed, a tree stump takes up valuable planting space. The stump can take up space preventing you from planting new trees, enlarging your vegetable or flower garden, building a play area for your kids, setting up a picnic table, or adding a pool. If you have a project planned, the stump may obstruct driveways you need access to or slow construction. Tree stump removal will allow you to make the best use of your space.

Certainly, if you need stump removal, contact Sexy Trees today. Hiring a professional is more affordable than you may realize and will be money well spent.

Posted on

Why Remove a Tree Stump – Stump Removal

Walnut Creek Tree Pruning

Tree stumps are bad news. Generally unsightly on any property, they’re also trip dangers and can attract white ants and termites.  They obstruct driveways, construction, and landscape design. They, unlike most things, actually have nothing good to offer. 

 

Why Remove It

Tree stumps aren’t just ugly and inconvenient. If you let a stump remain in your yard, the tree can actually regrow, and roots and continue to spread. This can complicate your life in many ways, including damaging sewage and other underground lines, and above ground fences and structures. Depending on the type of tree, the roots may begin growing another above ground tree in a different location that the original stump. Basically, keeping the stump means keeping a lot of guessing and worry too.

Stump Removal is Hard to Do Yourself

Deciding to do it on your own requires a lot of time, muscle, patience, and some tools you may not have. There are tool rental businesses where you can rent some of the things you may be missing, but you won’t find a stump grinder there. It’s too specialized to be useful for most people. 

If you do successfully extract all the root material needed to ensure the tree stays gone, there’s a really high chance that you’ll also destroy all the surrounding property, especially if you’re trying to remove an entire tree instead of a stump. Removing a tree stump is certainly not impossible to do yourself. The hardest part may be knowing if you’ve done the job fully. 

 

Having it Professionally Removed is Worth the Trouble

Professional arborists and tree removers can remove a stump (or whole tree) and ensure the tree doesn’t return. Using specifically designed grinders, the work goes quickly. Aside from having the right skills and tools, professionals also take the burden of clean up off your plate.

We can make the work of stump removal no harder than a phone call for you. Call Sexy Trees today about having your stump or sick tree removed.

Posted on

When is Best to Transplant Trees?

Tree Removal Lafayette

 

Maybe when you moved into your dream home, you noticed that beautiful tree in your backyard and thought, that would look so good if I could put it in my front yard. Or your tree has flourished to the point of outgrowing its current location. When is a good time to move/transplant your tree?

As with most things, it all depends on the type of tree. However, the biggest rule of thumb is to try to move it when it is dormant and not freezing. You want to move it before the colder weather hits or before the tree starts sprouting new foliage.

What is dormant?

During the winter months, trees go into their form of hibernation, called dormancy. While they may seem like they are sleeping or even dead, they’re doing quite a bit to keep going. They drop their leaves and fill their cells with water. Upon the arrival of winter, some of this water goes into the spaces between the cells. This water then becomes the barrier for the trees to protect against possible freezing.

Why transplant trees when they’re dormant?

During the non-dormancy period, trees are heavily reliant on the steady water flow coming to their roots. If this is cut off during the critical period, the tree maybe harmed and have a hard time adapting to its new environment. It would be similar to being in a nice warm shower and having someone dump ice cold water on you.

Dormant trees do not rely on water as much. They’ve lost their leaves and any fruits. They have time to establish their roots and get acclimated to their new environment before the new water supply becomes essential.

However, a critical warning. Do not move trees during extreme cold spells. This could dramatically damage the roots and prevent proper transplantation.

The following are some general rules of thumb for transplanting:

Pine/Evergreen: Fall

Oak: February/March

Maple: Late Fall

Fruit: Early

If you are wanting to transplant your tree, talk to our certified arborist at Sexy Trees. He can provide you key details to avoid damaging your tree.

Posted on

How to Identify a Dying Tree

Concord Tree Removal

 

Sexy Trees always wants to preserve and beautify the world with healthy trees. However, tree care sometimes means tree removal.  A dying tree, depending on the reason, can become a cancer to surrounding areas along with being a big eye sore.  Most of us are unable to know how to identify a dying tree, especially during the winter.

Signs of a Dying Tree

Since deciduous trees lose their leaves in the winter, it is hard to be sure whether the tree is dying or just going through its healthy annual cycle.  It’s important to know whether the leaf loss has been on-going or started in the fall. Pay attention to the tree’s behavior over a period of time to be certain of the full scope of the problem.  You’ll need to take this into consideration with other possible signs of a deteriorating tree.

 

Other hallmarks of a dying tree are discoloration, bark becoming brittle, and/or limbs falling off.  Most of us walk by our trees regularly but may not notice changes right away. Sometimes people see that a tree just doesn’t look right, but can’t pinpoint why.  It can be similar to approaching a person who has a cold.  You’ll notice that their color is off, they maybe clammy, and are just sluggish.  A dying tree will have subtle signs of distress showing that something is just not right.

 

Once you have a concern about a tree being in trouble, what should you do?  Just like you call a doctor to check on a sick person, you should contact a local certified arborist or a specialist in tree care to properly evaluate the tree.  Sometimes a dying tree can be saved by changing a few small things.  Other times, nothing can be done and it’s best to remove the tree.

 

We’ve seen many trees die over the past year as a direct result of the drought conditions.  In fact, local city councils like in Danville, San Ramon, Lafayette, and Walnut Creek have had to spend monies to either repair or replace numerous trees.

 

Sexy Trees has a certified arborist with years of experience.  If you are concerned about a particular tree or have questions, feel free to contact us at Sexytrees.com.

 

 

Posted on

What Should You Do With A Fallen Tree?

 

Trees can fall due to adverse weather, damage or underlying disease or pest infestation. A fallen tree needs to be dealt with and removed to prevent wood rotting, spreading of tree diseases and pests as well as the negative aesthetic and safety effects. So what is the right thing to do with a fallen tree?

Analyze The Causes And Responsibility

If a tree has fallen in or near your property, it’s important to ascertain the cause of the fallen tree, as well as who is responsible for its removal. Municipalities can offer aid in removal of trees that fall due to widespread cause or natural disasters. If a tree from the street or a park on public property falls in your yard, it will likely be the responsibility of local authorities to remove it.

However, if a tree rots or becomes diseased on your own property, it will be your responsibility to remove it or pay for it to be removed. If the cause of the fallen tree is disease or pest infestation, it’s advisable to remove the tree rapidly to prevent cross-infection with other trees.

fallen tree, tree removal, dead tree

Can You Use The Tree?

When a tree falls, the wood is often able to be recycled and used for some purpose, including firewood, mulch, landscaping or lumber. It’s important for you or an arborist to analyze the type of tree and wood as this can inform you as to its potential purpose. If the wood is damaged, it can still be used or sold as firewood or mulch (as long as it isn’t diseased). Quality wood can be turned into furniture or outdoor furniture, and valuable wood like mature walnut, cherry, redwood can be taken to a mill and cut into lumber.

Plan The Removal

Once you know what you want to do with your fallen tree, you can plan the removal. The type and size of tree and the hardness of wood will influence how difficult this is. Most tree removals require chainsaw work and other heavy machinery, so it’s important that the operator has the knowledge and experience to use these tools, and proper insurance and coverage is in place. Otherwise, call an arborist for professional removal.

Keep Safety In Mind

Because the process of analyzing, sawing and removing a fallen tree can be so difficult, bringing in a skilled arborist for the job is recommended. This ensures that the work done on your fallen tree is safe and insured, and you can get the best use out of the fallen tree’s wood. A professional arborist can guide you through the process of identifying the tree’s type and condition as well as inspect it for disease or pests. Then they can safely cut and remove your fallen tree, recycling the wood for its best purpose.

While a fallen tree in or around your property can be a nuisance or a hazard, finding the right way to deal with a fallen tree can turn it into a positive. For expert advice to help you make the right decision, contact your local arborist for professional tree removal.

Posted on

Lafayette Tree Removal – Cedar Tree

Walnut Creek Tree Care

Posted on

5 Signs You Need To Remove A Tree

Lafayette Tree Pruning

Trees make a beautiful and important contribution to our gardens and environment, so it’s a priority to preserve them wherever possible. However, sometimes despite our best efforts, trees need to be removed. While its best to avoid tree removal, there are circumstances where a tree must be removed. Here we look at 5 signs that can help you identify when you may need to remove a tree, and why tree removal can sometimes be very necessary.

The Tree Is Dead

When a tree is well and truly dead, most homeowners would prefer to remove it. Dead trees may be left behind in larger properties to provide homes for woodpeckers and other animals and insects. However, most homeowners with more compact yards prefer to remove dead trees for aesthetic reasons and to eliminate the possibility of spreading disease. Removing a dead tree of any size can be safely done by a qualified and skilled arborist.

The Tree Is Rotting or Diseased

If a tree is more than 50% dead or damaged, it’s large leader beaches are dead, or 50% of the root systems have been damaged, it’s probably necessary to remove the tree. If the tree is visibly rotten it should be removed, and if you notice large fungi growing near the base of the tree, the tree could be internally rotten. In this case the tree should be evaluated by an arborist, but may need removal.

Lafayette tree removal service

The Tree is Dangerous

Is the tree growing under power lines or near buildings or fences? Is the tree leaning or imbalanced with all branches on one side missing? A tree that is leaning or lopsided should be evaluated by an arborist as soon as possible as it could present a significant hazard. Trees that are leaning more than 15% will need to be removed in most cases.

The Tree Is Unsuitable for the Space

You or a previous homeowner may have planted the wrong type of tree or planted it in the wrong place. Now your tree is growing out of control or interfering with the plans you have for your home. While it is preferable to call a skilled arborist to provide pruning and corrective care to preserve the tree and try to make it work for your space, you may be left with no option but to remove it. While it’s best to avoid removing healthy trees, discussing your options with an arborist can help you find the best option for you.

The Tree Trunk is Damaged

If a tree’s trunk is damaged with cracks, vertical seams and old wounds, there is a chance it is rotting internally. A tree with a hollow trunk may survive for many years, but may not be stable. Because a professional’s judgement may be needed to decide if the tree is viable or not, you may need to consult with your local arborist. But as a general rule, if less than 25% of the trunk is rotten, damaged or hollow, the tree should be salvageable.

While its best to save trees wherever possible, occasionally there is no choice but to remove a tree. With regular tree care and attention to your trees health, you can preserve your trees, and safely and accurately evaluate whether a tree needs to be removed.

Posted on

4 Steps To Reviving A Topped Tree

Tree Care Pleasant Hill

A topped tree can be the result of unskillful or over zealous pruning. Topping a tree is when the topmost, healthy, leading branches are chopped off the tree to provide a quick and lazy pruning solution. While tree topping is best avoided in favor of careful and dedicated pruning by your local arborist, if you do have a topped tree, all is not lost. From this point it is critical to seek professional tree care and allow your tree time to heal and regrow if you want to see it thrive again.

Call A Local Arborist

A topped tree needs extra TLC, and your local arborist is the tree professional who can offer it. An arborist can help identify where your tree pruning went wrong, and identify a plan to nurse your topped tree back to health.

Topped trees are weak and unstable and prone to decline, but with the care of your local arborist you can identify the care and corrective pruning your tree needs to flourish again.

Give Your Tree Time

One of the most important things a topped tree needs is time. A topped tree has lost its prime energy and fuel producing leaf growth, and needs time and specialized care to regenerate this growth.

However, you may be happily surprised at how quickly your topped tree starts to put forth new growth. These fresh new branches are called water sprouts, and they need time to establish themselves. Avoid tampering with these sprouts until they have grown to the original height of the tree, as this is a sign the sprouts have established themselves.

Protect Strong Sprouts

The strongest of these initial sprouts are called the leaders. The leaders are the dominant branches that should be the tallest and free from any damage, cracks or pests. These leader branches will become the strong new branches of the tree, so it’s important to protect them and ensure their growth and health is promoted.

Trim Sprouts

In the initial stages of your topped trees healing, there is limited resources and energy to support the new growth, so the strongest and healthiest branches need to be prioritized. Contact an arborist to come and identify the strongest and weakest branches and appropriately prune the weakest branches in order to allow the strongest branches to flourish.

 

The short sprouts that are stronger and look like they could catch up to the new leader should be left to provide additional volume to the new growth. The new leader sprouts need to be monitored in order to support their healthy growth and to ensure the regeneration of the topped tree. This careful pruning process needs to be repeated over the next 4-6 years in order to facilitate the growth of the new branches. Contact a professional arborist to expertly trim the new branches in order to train them and cultivate new growth without limiting the regeneration of your topped tree.

 

A topped tree can be successfully repaired and returned to it’s former glory, but it does take some extra time, care and attention from you and your local arborist to bring your tree back to full health.

Posted on

Berkeley Tree Pruning – Lafayette Tree Care

Tree Removal Lafayette

Berkeley Tree Pruning company, Llamas Tree Service, showcases this Cedar tree that looks sexy even two years after the last pruning.