Trimming Trees before Hurricane Season

Well, we made it through a pretty tough hurricane season. Hopefully you, your family and your property fared well. It seems time just flies, so it won’t be long before it is almost June – time once again to prepare for hurricane season.

One great way to prepare for hurricane season is by trimming your trees. Trimming your trees before a hurricane will help keep any damage from flying tree limbs to a minimum for both you and your neighbors. It will also help keep clean-up to a minimum after any storm.

Here are a few tips for trimming your trees in advance of any hurricanes:

  • Trees with a thick canopy should be trimmed 25-30% per year, and be careful to remove some interior branches, allowing the wind to blow through.
  • Trees with multiple trunks can become dangerous to people and property as they grow, so you may want to consider eliminating these from your property before hurricane season.
  • And horizontal branches are better attached to the trunk. A branch growing upright can become a second trunk and easily split from the tree during a storm.
  • Never top a tree. Sprouts which grow in response to topping can easily split from the tree as they grow larger.

Happy trimming!