Do You Need To Have Dead Trees Removed?

Having trees around your home can do a lot in terms of aesthetics and making the air you breathe feel fresher. However, there are some cases when trees die around your property which isn’t a good thing for many reasons. If a tree dies in your yard, should you have it removed?

Tree removal services like Henshaws Tree Service exist for a few reasons. One is that we are here to help you improve your property just in case a tree is taking too much space. More importantly, however, we are there to keep you safe around trees that are posing a threat to your health and well-being.

Once a tree dies, it’s no longer structurally sound. That means it can fall at any time, damaging your home. Worse – it can hurt you and your family unexpectedly. It doesn’t take much for a dead tree to fall during a strong storm..

It’s also worth noting that if you have a dead tree in your home and you choose not to have it removed, your insurance won’t cover any damages made by it.

What should you do just in case this happens?

Removing A Dead Tree

This isn’t a job that you can do on your own. You’re going to have to hire special tree removers to get it removed as efficiently and as safely as possible. It’s not as simple as burrowing your chainsaw into the tree to cut it down to size.

Again, these trees are unstable. If you aren’t careful enough, you might not be able to calculate where and when the tree will fall once you start cutting it down.

Dead ash trees are particularly more dangerous. These are more brittle and thus, they are more dangerous as well. Removing dead ash trees requires special heavy equipment for them to be removed safely. Doing it manually is a bad idea as it puts a lot of risk on the person doing the job.

Not all trees need to be removed from your yard, however. If you want to make sure that it’s actually time to get the job done, then look at these signs first:

• Fungal Growth

Look around the trunk of the tree. If you see a sudden increase in fungal growth at the bottom, then it’s very likely that the tree is dead already. What this means is that the internal parts of the tree have already rotted out. The only living organism that’s on the tree is the fungus itself.

Severe fungal growth often means that the tree is already very unstable. As such, you might want to call an arborist as soon as you can once you spot this.

• Bare Branches

A tree that’s alive and well should have left around it especially during certain seasons like Spring. If it’s Spring and the tree has countless bare branches, then that means it’s no longer capable of growing leaves as it is already dead.

There will be some times of the year when the tree will have bare branches just because of the season. In times like these, there’s no cause to be alarmed. Just to be certain though, you might want to check for other signs instead.

You can also perform a scratch test on the branches. Grab a branch, cut it with a knife in between. If the inside of the branch is moist, then the tree is alive and healthy. If it’s dried out, it might be already dead. Do this on a few branches all around the tree. Don’t just focus on one area.

• Cracks And Brittle Barks

Look at the bottom of the trunk again. Try to check if there are any vertical cracks that run alongside the tree. This can either mean that the tree is in bad health or that it’s already dead. These cracks can go deeper and once they do, they could result in the tree falling down suddenly.

While you’re there, run your hands alongside the barks as well. It should not break off easily. If the barks break off, the tree is starting to dry out. Barks should be very hard and can only be taken off with force.

You can still save trees that are in poor health with fertilizer and proper management. However, once a tree is dead, your only options are to either leave it as it is or have it removed. Obviously, leaving the tree as is, is not a good idea.

Having a dead tree in your backyard or anywhere around your property is a serious problem that’s waiting to happen. It’s very important that you have these trees removed professionally before they cause harm to others.

When you think it’s time to have them removed, call us at Henshaws Tree Service for help and we’ll take it down safely.