Consulting:
We offer a full range of consulting services, including evaluations,
plant health care, suggested replanting materials, which trees
to prune and when.
Consulting is especially important for anyone who plans to build
a new home: we recommend meeting with an arborist before siting
of the house, to ensure that no valuable trees are damaged during
construction. As arborists, we can be an advocate for your trees,
before heavy construction equipment imperils the tree’s
roots and trunk. A tree’s roots can spread up to two feet
for every inch of trunk diameter, so it is crucial that protective
barriers be placed around the trees that you want to preserve.
Because roots are sensitive to soil grade, it is critical that
soil not be added to – or removed from – the base
of the tree.
Tree health care:
Diagnosis before treatment is essential
Pruning out
damaged or diseased foliage and branches
Injecting
for Bronze Birch borer, Birch leafminer, tulip scale
Spraying for
Hemlock woolly adelgid, Spruce needleminer, Pine sawfly, Arborvitae
leafminer
Fungicide treatments
for Anthracnose, Diplodia tip blight, Pine Needlecasts, Fire blight,
etc.
Fertilizing
with injectable tree formula fertilizer and mycorrhizal fungi
With
trees, structural soundness and health often are two very different
issues. A tree can look like the healthiest tree on the street,
while having a severely rotten or hollow trunk. Such a tree is
not obvious to the casual observer. Trees located near people,
pets or valuable property are the most deserving of safety inspections.
Structural
training – Proactive, structural pruning of young trees
can eliminate the need for costly, possibly dangerous pruning
later on. Most tree failures are caused by splitting between leaders;
proper pruning early on can eliminate one or more leaders.
Ornamental
pruning – Specimen trees, whether evergreen or deciduous,
can be pruned to highlight their distinctive shape in your landscape.
Safety
pruning – We will remove dead branches over 2 inches
in diameter. Branches this size and larger can fall and badly
injure a person or pet walking underneath. In safety pruning,
we remove unsafe branches and branches that have developed or
might develop structural defects.
Size
reduction – Selectively pruning at the right time can
control a tree’s size and form without damaging the overall
health of the tree. This is especially helpful when trees have
been planted close to buildings or garden areas.
Thinning
– We can show you how to let in more light to gardens, allowing
other trees and shrubs to attain their proper height.
Removing damaged branches – We occasionally have to remove a tree or a portion of a tree that has been girdled by ropes or wires. We recommend NEVER wrapping rope, wire or cable around any living part of a tree. A tree must expand in circumference if it is to continue to grow, and anything wrapped around it will gradually cut into the bark and cut off the tree’s ability to absorb water and nutrients.
Satellite
transmission – Trees often grow into the path of a
satellite dish signal, causing interference. Proper pruning may
allow you to keep your tree, and permit the satellite dish to
receive its signal too.
Viewscape
pruning – Sometimes the only thing wrong with a landscape
is there is too much of it. Selective pruning or even removal
of a tree or two can improve the overall appearance of your property.
Clearance pruning – We prune branches
away from houses and roofs so they will dry out with with good
ventilation from rain or snow. We create clearance around chimneys
to foster a good draft. We clear branches away from utility wires
so they will not rub or fall onto wires in winter storms. We cut
low branches over lawns, driveways and walkways to allow unimpeded
passage of pedestrians or vehicles.
Cabling and bracing:
Many times an older tree develops cracks at a branching point. Cabling
can often salvage such trees, giving them an extended lifetime while
providing a safe environment for the homeowner.
Tree cutting
and removal: A tree that is dead should be cut down, especially
if it creates a hazard for people or animals that walk under it.
The Allan’s Tree Service crew is trained to use the most efficient
techniques, whether the tree can be reached with our bucket truck,
or needs to be climbed. We will specify in our written proposal
whether we will remove the wood, or cut it up and leave it for you
to use as firewood.
Stump grinding:
Although stumps will naturally rot if left alone, it often takes
many years for this to happen. A faster solution is to grind out
the stump; our equipment grinds to between 4 and six inches below
grade, so that the area can be replanted with grass or with a young
tree or shrub.
Root excavation:
Sometimes, because of soil compaction or barriers such as rocks,
sidewalks or other paving, a tree (especially maples) will develop
one or more girdling roots. These roots prevent normal expansion
of the tree’s trunk, and must be removed. Both situations
can be remedied by expert root excavation.
