when i do the landscape at the habitat for humanity houses
i try to do what i can to make trees better
make the landscape
well function for the homeowner the best i can
since i have limited funds to do the landscape
plus
i try to get to know the homeowner to decide how much
landscape do they want to manage
some want the minimal done to the landscape
so
thats usually based on the cities requirement
3-4 shrubs
at least one 4 inch approved tree like a cedar elm or oak
sod in the front
so
sometimes thats all we have money to do
so thats all we can do
on this house
the old house was burned
the remaining slab was removed
of
course building the houses are rough on trees that are
already on site
so
i protected them well with boards
so boards and machines wont be banging the bark and limbs
i also trimmed up the trees to open up the canopy
trying to predict which limbs would not interfere with
construction
and
be a source of nuisance for the new homeowner
i also removed any damaged limbs from the fire
it looks like even though the tree itself was damaged some
they will survive ok
i also went ahead and added a layer of compost
in the drip line as well as a sprinkling of
organic fertilizer to help these trees
neglected for years it looked like
during construciton a lot of soil was dug up
piled up
so i noticed that over the time of construction
that a lot of soil had piled up around the trunk
of the trees
a lot of it was there before construction started
so now that we are through with the outside construction
i removed all the protective barriers
gently raked off all the soil around the trees
there is a thing called a root flare that should be showing
on trees
planted too deep a tree will have its lower bark underground
which
allows it to rot and permanently damage the tree
stunting its growth
now
these poor old live oaks were already fighting a
battle from
having being fire damaged
having roots cut during construction
having its drip line walked on and driven on
for weeks
they didnt need the added stress of having their
root flares all covered up
so i went to work
gently removing all the piled up dirt from the tree trunk
one tree had a foot of dirt piled up
yes there was some damage done to the bark
but
it should do ok
thank goodness
i added a thick 4 inch ring of mulch around the tree
leaving the root flare and roots exposed
if a tree is planted correctly
this allows for the maximum growing environment for
these trees
now take a look at the base of your trees
can you see the flare of the trunk as it enters the ground
or
does your tree look like a straight pencil in the ground
maybe you should consider gently digging out that flare
and roots
so your trees can breathe
flare em out i say
i will be the featured speaker today
at an alzheimers disease and dementia conference
at baylor scott and white sun city clinic
4945 williams drive georgetown texas
from 430-630 pm
i will speak for about 45 minutes then will answer questions
from the audience for the rest of the time
the public is invited
the organicgreen doctor
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