Trees & Hurricanes

Published on October 01, 2023

Hurricane season is ramping up here in Florida, and it is pretty normal to start to worry about your trees. You may have seen news stories of trees falling on homes, massive limbs crushing cars, and you may be afraid the same thing will happen to you. 

It's important to remember that trees are more often victorious than they are failures. In fact, most trees survive hurricanes and continue to provide shade, oxygen, and shelter for wildlife. Trees also provide protection during storms by buffering strong winds away from your home. Basically, the tree bears the brunt of the storm instead of your house.

Of course, there are some trees that do fail during hurricanes. This is often due to preexisting structural issues, health problems, or improper pruning. All of these reasons can be addressed well before storm season and help keep you and your property safe.

If you're feeling anxious about your trees surviving a storm, it's important to take a deep breath and make a plan. First, contact your local municipal arborist. A municipal arborist's first priority is public safety. They will not recommend any work that is unnecessary or could pose a hazard. They will also be able to tell you if you need to have any trees removed. They will be able to give you an honest and unbiased opinion on your trees and suggest the best course of action. They can also give you a good baseline of criteria for what is and is not recommended, which will help you make informed decisions when you get estimates from other tree services. Many municipalities have International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborists specially trained in evaluating tree health and risk.

Once you have spoken to your municipal arborist, you can start getting estimates from local tree services. It's important to get multiple estimates so that you can compare prices and services. However, it's also important to be aware that not all tree services are created equal. Some tree services may be more interested in making a sale than in providing you with the best possible care for your trees. Don't just search the internet for a random tree service. Be wary of tree services that seem to be more interested in what you want, rather than what is actually best for your trees. If a tree service is willing to do something that a municipal arborist has told you not to do, that's a red flag.

Here are some tips for choosing a tree service:

  • Ask about the experience and qualifications of the arborists who will be working on your trees.
  • Make sure the tree service is insured.
  • Get everything in writing, including the scope of work, the price, and the warranty.

What type of pruning is necessary?

  • Remove dead and dying limbs
  • Remove hazardous branches likely to fall
  • Provide minor clearance over a home or structure (typically 6 -10 feet, more is not necessarily better)
  • Complete tree removal because of poor health, disease, or hazardous structure likely to fail.

Over-pruning a tree for fear of failure can many times create a more hazardous tree. Pruning just to prune is not recommended and pruning because of fear can sometimes make matters worse.

The best time to prune trees is during the fall or winter, when the tree is dormant. This is because the tree is not actively growing, so it is less stressed by the pruning. Pruning at other times of the year can be more stressful for the tree, and it may not heal as well.

The majority of homeowners wait until hurricane season to prune their trees, often times when a storm is fast approaching. In this case, the desired pruning is often rushed, and the purpose for pruning is fear. We live in Florida, we have storms, it happens every summer and fall. Knowing this, why not prune far ahead of the storm season, when it is best for the tree and typically less costly for you? 

Moving forward, be prepared, know your trees, contact your municipal arborist, and hire an ISA certified arborist to maintain your trees well before storm season. It is also a great idea to have your trees inspected by an arborist immediately after major storms to help identify any new defects. 

Finally, whether it is before or after a storm, it is best to leave tree work to the professionals. There are many unknown safety variables with tree work and this is something you do not want to learn the hard way.

In summary, be proactive, not reactive when caring for your trees and that reoccurring anxiety every June may just subside a bit.

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