Hurricane Matthew did not touch land with its strongest winds, yet it caused a lot of damage. Trees were uprooted and a lot of limbs went flying. Buildings were damaged and power lines went down. A
good bit of the trouble could have been prevented by proper tree maintenance.
Most of the damaged trees had not been pruned or at least not properly pruned. You do not cut trees back a lot. Instead you want to open them up. Cut away dead wood. Cut away crossed branches. Thin out most of the small branches, leaving the main limbs and some of the smaller branches, the ones coming right off the main ones at nice angles. This opens the tree to air flow and gives the uncut branches room to blow around. When cutting, do not cut right where the limbs join, this can damage the bark and invite insects and disease. Instead, you will notice, near where the branches join, a slightly thicker area. This is the collar and you cut right against that.
If you can trim yourself, great, but be careful. I once got hit in the back of the head by a heavy branch and it did a lot of damage to my neck. If you have any doubts, call a professional. Sometimes, more often than we care to admit, you will, ultimately, save a lot by having a job professionally done. Just make sure you get a licensed arborist.
One more thing. I noticed that a lot of damage was done because trees were located right up against buildings. This is a poor idea, especially when large trees are involved. When you plant a tree, find out how big it will grow and plan accordingly.
Trees are beautiful and we all love their shade on hot days but, they must be properly cared for or disaster may strike.
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