Any improvement you make to your home should be considered an investment. Those investments can pay off in increased value. That is beneficial even if you don’t plan on selling your home. Those improvements often begin on the exterior of your home starting with your curb appeal and that curb appeal is always enhanced by the presence of trees. You might have bought your home with trees already growing strong. You might also be considering planting new trees. Whether the trees on your property are for shade, fruit or aesthetics, you want to make sure they stay healthy.
Map Out the Planting
If you are planting a new tree and you expect it to grow tall, then you need to give it room for its roots to flourish. That means planting it far away from any pipes. If you don’t know where your home’s sewer and gas lines run on your property, then you should get a survey report to avoid planting near those pipes.
Inspect Your Trees
Trees don’t die of old age. They are brought down by choice, weather or disease. This is why you want to conduct a thorough tree inspection every six months. Get up close to look for bugs or dead branches. Both should be removed. It also helps to keep the tree pruned. A major prune should happen at the end of fall when the tree will become dormant for the winter. In the summer, you can do small pruning for shaping. If you’re not sure about how much to cut or where then bring in a professional tree trimmer. They can also conduct that inspection for you at the same time.
Add Fertilizer
Trees flourish in the forest because they can pull in a lot of natural fertilizer from dead and decayed plant life that is all around them. That is not the case for your front or back yard. That is what you might want to consider adding organic fertilizers to the base of your trees. You can be on the same fertilizing schedule as your lawn.
Mulch the Base
You should create a “mulch zone” around the base of your tree. Remove all the grass and weeds from at least three feet from the trunk. Then fill in that area with four inches of mulch. Your local nursery should have a good recommendation for the best mulch for a tree. Not only will the mulch help provide nutrients and moisture but it will look great.
Watering
Newly planted trees need consistent watering for the first few months of growth. Older trees can be maintained with the occasional rainstorms. However, you should keep a watch out to make sure the soil is moist around a mature tree. Just dig a small hole by the base of the tree and see if it is moist. If it is, then you don’t have to worry about watering. If dirt is dusty and dry, then break out the hose.
The care you provide for your trees today can have them providing oxygen and shade for generations.
