Here’s how to manage storm-damaged trees

Features

February 5, 2010

By David Cantrell The McAlester News-Capital Fri Feb 05, 2010, 10:17 AM CST

We may have missed the ice storm this time, but winter is not over. Severe weather is a fact of life in Oklahoma, with storm-related damage a major impediment to maintaining healthy trees. Ice and wind have the power to snap limbs and large branches, leaving landscapes littered with storm-damaged trees. While we cannot control the weather, we can implement measures to manage storm-damaged trees and minimize risk to people and personal property.

The decision to save or remove a storm-damaged tree is usually a subjective one, with the choice relying more on opinion than fact. Emotions often are the overriding factor in the decision process, especially when the damaged tree is a very large, old, or ‘heirloom’ tree. Here are a few points to keep in mind when deciding whether to rehabilitate or remove your storm-damaged tree:

1. Use common sense and ask yourself if the damage has perhaps rendered this tree hazardous. In other words, does it now look vulnerable to any additional wind or ice event that could cause it to fall in its entirety or at least “drop” one or more large branches that could damage nearby property or prove fatal to people and pets?

2. Educate yourself as to the potential growth rate and commercial availability of replacement trees.

3. If significant bark has been ripped or loosened from the trunk, be realistic about the tree’s potential for attack from opportunistic microorganisms and damaging insects outlined later.

When pruning, first remove all broken or damaged limbs, which are the most hazardous to people and property. Never remove more than one-third of the branching system of any tree. If more than one-third of the branches have been damaged by wind or ice, consider tree removal rather than attempting to salvage the tree. Cut limbs back to a lateral branch that is nearly one-half the diameter of the removed limb. Do not leave stubs as this is unsightly.

Another issue to storm damaged trees is microorganisms that occur in and upon trees naturally in plant tissue or in soil without causing disease. However, these same microorganisms can become pathogens when a tree is environmentally stressed or damaged by the prevailing weather. Damage from ice and wind storms also creates points of infection for wood decay microorganisms and insects. In living wood, pathogens are capable of invading damaged sapwood and are tolerant to chemicals in the reaction zone of tree wounds.

Reducing tree stress and proper pruning of damaged trees can help manage diseases caused by opportunistic pathogens and wood decay microorganisms. Carefully maintaining nutrient and water requirements and properly pruning damaged trees will help keep your prize-winning landscape specimen disease free.

For more in-depth information contact the Pittsburg County OSU Extension Office at 918-423-4120. To obtain a copy of the fact sheet EPP 7323 “Managing Storm Damaged Trees” call or come by the office.

David Cantrell is the Extension Agriculture Educator for the Pittsburg County Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service. Call him at 423-4120, or e-mail david.cantrell@

okstate.edu.

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