Storm & Winter Damage

Strong winds during last year’s Hurricane Sandy cause a lot of damage to trees and shrubs in the landscape by uprooting them and breaking limbs. That damage was immediately obvious.

What you may have attributed to winter burn may be burned foliage from wind and saltwater damage. Damage that you can’t see underground from excessive saltwater infiltration will show as a stressed or failing plant. The effects of this storm will continue to damage plants for some time but there are a few ways to mitigate the damage to your landscape such as irrigating a few inches per week in early spring to flush out salt in the soil, fertilizing with an organic, salt-free fertilizer to promote new leaf growth and proper pruning to ensure the structural integrity of the plant.

Not sure why your plants are stressed or are you suspicious of residual hurricane and harsh winter damage? A certified arborist can detect issues not visible to the untrained eye such as weakened limbs, injured root systems and salt damage. Decrease the chance of damage during the next major weather event. Call Gary Carbocci, an ISA Certified Arborist (NY0151A), at (631) 271-6460 at Goldberg & Rodler’s Tree Care Long Island division and assess your landscape today.