Essential Autumn tree care tips

Seasonal fall temperatures and lack of snow make it perfect conditions to work in  your yard or timber areas. 

Late fall to winter is a great time to prune trees. Insect and pathogens are in dormant stages with colder weather. When trees start to grow next spring they will start to produce wound tissue to cover the cuts, reducing the chance of insect and disease problems. Leaves are gone off the trees making structural pruning much easier. Without the leaves on it is easier to see co-dominate leaders, crossing or rubbing branches, and branches with poor branch angles. Branches on trees in your yard should be removed before they are much thicker than your thumb. Try not to remove more than a quarter of the crown.

Water your trees deeply and less frequently to encourage deep root growth and make them more resilient. Water during the early morning to minimize evaporation and freezing. It gives your trees more time to drink up.

Invasive bush honeysuckle and buckthorn trees are easy to spot through the woods in the fall. Their leaves remain green late into the season after everything else has fallen off, and often remain attached as late as Thanksgiving. Pesticides applied to cut surfaces work best this time of year as sap is being translocated to the roots.