Lincolnshire Advanced Tree Care Types

October 15, 2018 by Joseph Skibbie

Two Types of Advanced Tree Care in Lincolnshire

Just like humans, trees require comprehensive care because they’re complex beings. Because of this, we look at trees through two lenses when it comes to providing services for our customers. Doing so lets us truly cement our reputation as Advanced Tree Care.

Physical Health

When we talk about a tree’s physical health, we’re really talking about how everything about the tree is working well together. When physically healthy, a tree should have an overall healthy appearance from roots to canopy. Its leaves should be thick and green (except, of course, in fall, or if the tree is a variety that has a non-green leaf). Those leaves shouldn’t display bumpy scales, powdery substances, or any other signs of widespread infestation or damage. Unless it’s late in the fall, its leaves should not be showing signs of stress, discoloration, or dieback.

Lincolnshire Advanced Tree Care Types — Trees have complex systems like the human body, so it’s important to recognize and treat troubling symptoms.

The tree’s canopy should be thriving. While some trees will have dead branches, a physically healthy tree will have no more than 17% dead branches compared with its entirety. The branches and limbs should be free of any disturbances, insect holes, bleeding, peeling bark, mushrooms, or other problems.

The trunk should also be similarly healthy—no loose or deteriorating bark, obvious insect holes, or other signs of stress or decline. At the base of the tree, the root flares should be free of any soils, mulches, and debris. Root flares, especially of mature trees, should be pronounced—meaning you’re able to see them and they crest over the top of the soil.

These details are all the things our experienced staff and certified arborists consult when assessing the physical health of any tree we care for.

Structural Health

A tree’s structural health has to do with the strength and soundness of its overall structure. In a structurally healthy tree, the limbs and branches are free of inclusions, bifurcations, embeds, rubbing, and competing limbs. Though these are terms specific to tree care, the concept is simpler than the words suggest: if your tree’s branches look complete, distinct from another, and are growing healthy and separately, your tree is likely to be structurally healthy. If its branches don’t fit this description, it may be time to consult a certified arborist.

The tree’s limbs and trunk should also have good taper—meaning the limb and each branch start wider and gradually thin out. Branch distribution should be relatively even around the trunk and throughout the canopy, and the tree should be free of bark disturbances.

An array of factors can affect a tree’s structural health: age, infestation, disease, weather, and accidents all factor in. So do particularly hot summers and particularly cold and icy winters.

Now that you know the difference between physical health and structural health when it comes to trees, we hope you’ll be looking at the trees in your yard with new eyes. And if you notice anything that raises an alarm, be sure to call on a certified arborist to assess the health of your tree.

Advanced Tree Care combines top-notch equipment, cutting-edge technology, and well-trained staff to provide emergency tree removal and tree maintenance services. With a presence in nine counties and two states, we work daily to provide unparalleled customer service, safety, and efficiency—as well as the expertise to beautify your landscaping and community. Advanced Tree Care isn’t just our name—it’s also our purpose!

Professional Tree Care

October 1, 2018 by Joseph Skibbie

When Do I Need a Professional to Handle My Tree Care?

Trees make up about 15% of your overall yard landscape. While 15% doesn’t seem like a lot on the surface, think about how important your trees are. They provide shade, they provide visual variety, and they’re a long-lived member of your ecosystem.

Trees can also be costly to replace or remove. Caring for them properly is not only the right thing to do for the environment, it’s the right thing to do to protect your investment. Any signs of stress, deterioration, or disease should be a clear indication that a tree health diagnosis—provided by an ISA Certified Arborist—is in your best interest.

Reasons to Consult a Professional on Tree Care

As a homeowner, when do you know you need to consult a professional? The following list of conditions or symptoms is a goodplace to start, although it’s not an exhaustive list. You should consult a certified arborist if you notice any of the following:

Thin, dwarfed, or damaged leaves
Tree care can be tricky and costly, which is why hiring a certified arborist is the best way to protect your property.
Leaf colors other than dark green (except for certain trees—such as Japanese or Norway maples—or during early spring and fall, of course)
Leaves that are slow to bud in spring
Leaves that drop early, before true fall has begun
Dieback at the tips of your trees
Dead or dying limbs
Dead or dying leaves
Bumpy scales or powdery substances on the bark, root flares, branches, or leaves
Loose, deteriorating, or heavily flaking bark
Growths such as mushrooms on the trunk, limbs, roots, or beneath your tree
Insect holes and/or bleeding on the tree’s trunk or branches
External damage from an impact to the tree—from a car collision or an accident with a winter snowplow (sometimes common along parkways)
Weather damage, from intense summer storms, ice storms, heavy winter snowfall, or ice
Damage from drought or spells of intense hot weather

If you’re noticing any of these signs, calling in a certified arborist can help you address a situation before it worsens. There are certainly conditions under which a tree cannot be saved, but there are plenty where an early intervention can save a beloved tree. Just imagine your yard without that grand oak in the corner or the beautiful maple shading your front porch. When in doubt, call us to come on out.

Hiring Certified Arborists

September 15, 2018 by Joseph Skibbie

Why Would You Hire a Certified Arborist?

Simply put, an arborist is a true professional in the art and science of tree care. He or she has spent at least three years in full-time arboriculture work, has prepared for and taken a comprehensive examination, and has agreed to a code of ethics regarding professional conduct. But when rubber meets the road—or roots meet the soil, per se—what is the difference in service a certified arborist can provide?

ISA Certified Arborist

hiring certified arborists — There can be big risks to your property and family when tree care is not done to the highest standards of a Certified Arborist.

When we talk about a certified arborist, we’re referring to a professional who has qualified as an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist. He or she has had hands-on experience for three years in pruning, cabling and bracing, tree climbing, tree installation and establishment, disease identification, removal, and more. Then, he or she has passed an exam that covers a range of topics on tree maintenance, emergencies, and care. Recertification happens every three years.

Why a certified arborist?

Tree care is complex, and mistakes can be costly. When a winter storm has rolled through and downed a huge old tree across your power line, or your garage is threatened by a weak branch, you want a certified arborist to handle the job. Other situations may be less immediately dangerous but no less important: warding off disease, enhancing your yard, or choosing the right species of tree that will thrive in your space.

The role of a certified arborist

A certified arborist can help you make sound decisions and avoid costly mistakes. For example, a certified arborist will know:

Which trees have invasive root systems and should never be planted near driveways, asphalt, sewer systems, or homes
Which trees should never be planted too close to a home or other structure
How to properly care for trees as they mature and age
When a tree has become infested or diseased, and how to safely remove it
How to coordinate the removal of a high-risk tree or one damaged by a passing storm—so that people and structures nearby are safe

It takes a great deal of knowledge and experience to understand all aspects of a situation—and what a tree (or its owner) may really need.

Choosing a tree service

Ensure you’re entrusting your trees to the best care—choose a tree service that’s led by a certified arborist. As with any other professional service, you’ll also want to consult customer reviews as well as reference the area of service, or the geographical range in which the tree service provides care.

Advanced Tree Care Certified Arborists

September 7, 2018 by Joseph Skibbie

You’ve heard us tell you before: proper tree care can be complex. Caring for trees, treating or preventing disease, and safely removing a tree all take a significant amount of knowledge and experience. When considering which company to hire for tree care, you should always choose a service led by a certified arborist. Such a service—like ours—will always deliver superior comprehensive service.

But what does it take to become an arborist? And what does certification really mean? In this article, we take you behind the scenes, so you can truly appreciate what goes into that level of knowledge and care.

Becoming an ISA Certified Arborist

Advanced-Tree-Care-Certified-Arborists — To become a Certified Arborist, he or she must go through extensive training.

First off, when we talk about certification, we’re talking about qualifying as an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist. To qualify, an arborist must have at least three full years of full-time experience in arboriculture. This experience must be hands-on and typically includes:

Tree pruning
Tree cabling and bracing
Tree fertilization
Tree planting, or called installation and establishment of trees
Diagnosis and treatment of tree problems and diseases
And, not least of all, tree climbing

Why so much experience, across so many different aspects of the job? ISA certification means that an arborist is prepared to provide the benefit of his or her maximum expertise to the care of trees across a range of situations: from commercial or municipal properties to residential situations, through all four seasons (in our area), and in routine and emergency situations. That level of professional certification requires contending with every aspect of the job for full preparation.

ISA Certification Exam

Three years’ experience isn’t sufficient alone. After providing evidence of three full years of experience across all those functions, the arborist must study for and take an examination. The topics of the certification exam include questions on:

Soil management
The proper identification and selection of trees
Installation and establishment of trees
Safe work practices
Tree biology
Pruning, cabling, and bracing
Diagnosis and treatment of conditions and diseases
Urban forestry
Tree protection
Tree risk management

After successfully passing the examination, the arborist agrees to a set of ethics that will govern his or her professional behavior. The arborist then receives a certificate with the ISA seal, which designates him or her as an official ISA Certified Arborist.

Certification is valid for three years, and continuing education is required to maintain certification. Before the three years are up, the arborist must become recertified—which happens either through retaking the certification exam or by accruing at least 30 continuing education credits.

Now that you know what becoming an arborist requires, you’ll understand why our professionals can deliver an outstanding level of service for the care of your trees.

Lincolnshire Homeowners Seek Lawn Care Service

August 18, 2018 by Joseph Skibbie

Lincolnshire Homeowners Seek Lawn Care Service

It’s inescapable and bittersweet: summer is on the wane. Slowly but surely, the pools will close, sunrise will come later, and local retailers’ shelves will overflow with back-to-school gear. In a few weeks’ time, temperatures will start to drop—and the new season will roll in. With that change, Lincolnshire homeowners seek lawn care services, but what are the best tips to care for your lawn as we transition to fall?

Give your lawn a cold, hard look

Lincolnshire Homeowners Seek Lawn Care Service — As the season changes, proper lawn care is vital to the success and beauty of your property.

Three-quarters of homeowners have a property with a lawn, and of those, nearly 70% think their lawns could be improved. That’s seven in ten homeowners. Are you among them? (Seven in ten readers will say: yes!)

If your yard could be improved—and be honest here—ask yourself if you need a full lawn renovation or merely some focused TLC.

Does your lawn have a few bare patches here or there?
Does your grass compete with weeds, like creeping Charlie or crabgrass?
Does it look a little thin?

If the answer to these questions is yes, you’re going to be able to see definite improvement with adherence to a few basic lawn care principles consistently over the course of the next season or two.

How about, though, if:

Your yard has a lot of dead patches in it
You see more weeds than grass

In those cases, you might consider a lawn renovation. A lawn renovation involves killing the existing turf and introducing—via reseeding or a combination of reseeding and sod—new turf that can take over and flourish.

Commit to a proper mowing schedule

Regular mowing keeps your lawn healthy, and it’s important that you create and stick to a mowing regimen. In our area, mowing typically begins the last week of April or the first week of May, depending on the weather. You should mow weekly during periods of rapid growth in late spring and early to mid-summer. Towards the end of summer and into the fall, you might switch to mowing every 10 days to two weeks. Continue mowing until grass has slowed its growth cycle completely.

Water optimally

Don’t overwater your lawn, as frequent watering and overwatering can acclimate your yard to an overdependence on water. In addition, some municipalities have restrictions on when you can—and can’t—water your lawns, because of water restrictions. Be sure to check with yours so you’re not in violation of any local ordinances.

Clear your yard of leaves before the first snow

Before the first measurable fall or winter snowfall, it’s important to have cleared the leaves from your yard. Decaying leaves can introduce mold or disease to your yard, which can affect the health of your yard next season. This situation can also affect the health of your shrubs, ornamental plants, and trees.

Even though we are a tree care company, we believe that a truly healthy property ecosystem reflects its interconnectedness. Trees flourish when your lawn is healthy and disease-free. As the new season arrives, be sure you’re caring for your whole yard.