How To Tell If Your Tree Needs To Be Removed

1/21/2020 (Permalink)

Trees are beautiful additions to any yard, sheltering our property year after year. We can even become quite fond of them as they grow and change with the seasons. Our children play in them, and their branches have been hosts to birdhouses, treehouses, and windchimes.

But if a tree is posing a risk to people and property, the safest thing to do is to have it removed. How will you know when the time comes? Here are some ways to tell if your tree needs to be removed. 

• Bark. Scratch a small piece of bark off of some twigs from your tree. If the layer under the bark is brown and dry, that is not a good sign. Some signs of a dead tree can include:

• Decay-producing fungi, like mushrooms, growing at the base of the trunk around the roots. The roots of a tree are a strong indicator of the health of the tree
• Chipped, peeling bark and cracks in the trunk
• Cavities in the trunk
• Dead or hanging branches in the upper part (called the crown)
• Fine twigs with no living buds at the ends
• The tree has developed a lean that it did not have before; this can be an indicator that the tree is dying and may fall

Once it’s determined that your tree is declining, or even no longer living, it becomes a safety hazard. It can lose branches or tip over in a storm, damaging your home or property, and it can be completely unpredictable. 

If a pest or a disease caused the tree to decline, it will be vital that it be removed so that other trees in the area don’t become infected. 

You may be considering taking the tree out by yourself, but it’s a big job with a lot of factors to take into consideration. Here at SERVPRO of Belle Meade/West Nashville we are ready to help with tree removals. We are also fire damage and water damage experts, and we handle mold remediation, as well.