How To Cut Down A Tree

Cutting down a tree on your property can be quite the task, whether you are looking to hire professionals like us or are wanting to do it yourself. Here are a few steps to get you started, what you can expect, and what you need.

Inspect The Area

Having a tree that needs to be cut down on your property can be the start of a big task. The first step is to make sure to inspect the area. Is it safe to cut down large branches, limbs, or the tree itself? Is there a risk to property or people? If so it may be better to hire a professional. Check for the following:

• Diseases
• • Is the tree free from disease and just needing to be removed?
• Are there dead limbs?
• • As a tree falls these limbs can be projected large distances, unlike live limbs that often stay on or very near the tree.
• Is there anything in the way?
• • A tree is much taller than you imagine and needs a very large fall line to make sure it’s safe. Is there a large area for the tree to safely fall?

Make Sure You Have The Right Equipment

Once you know there is a safe area to fell a tree it’s time to make sure you have the right gear to properly and safely do so. What you’ll need

• Safety glasses: can be used to make sure any splinters or debris are kept your eyes.
• Ear Plugs: while not commonly thought of, chainsaws are quite loud and can cause damage to hearing without proper protective equipment.
• Hard Hat: any falling debris can cause serious injury.
• Gloves: Gloves are there not only to protect your hands but also great for making sure you don’t slip and have a firm grip.
• Chainsaw: to cut down the tree or limbs.
• Felling wedges: while most do it yourself will not use felling wedges they are critical and can help point the tree in the right direction to fall.

Always check with your on local regulations as your county, HOA, or city may require a permit or a licensed professional to cut down a tree in your area.

Fall Length & Plan Your Route

We talked about this earlier but it’s a critical part of cutting down a tree. Double-check your fall line and make sure that you have more than enough room. If you think it is going to be close or “it should be enough room” we recommend hiring a professional. A tree falling can crush a car, crack the foundation of a pool, and go through your roof with ease.

While working on cutting the tree you’ll need to make sure you have a way to safely step away from the tree after it begins to fall or if something unexpected happens. If the tree is tall enough and has to be cut in multiple sections while still standing, your best bet is to hire a professional. Tripping or a slow escape path can cause you to be in harm’s way. Make sure to have a clear path.

Correct Cutting

Cutting down a tree can be seen as counterintuitive and complex. The first thing to look for is what side of the tree is heaviest and has the most growth. Often people will begin to cut down a tree and not realize that they are cutting in all of the right spots but that the tree is weighted to fall in the opposite direction. Make sure you know which way the tree wants to fall and how to counteract that if it doesn’t align with your fall line.

Begin cutting. Which side you cut on is where the tree will fall if everything else is done correctly.

• Cut at the right height
  • A comfortable working height is best. Cutting higher or lower can be dangerous.
• Cut at a 45-degree angle
  • You’ll be cutting a notch so you’ll have an angle on the top of the notch and then a flat cut at the bottom of your cut. This allows for the saw to work effectively and minimizes pinching the blade due to pressure from the tree leaning.
• Small Cuts Add up
  • You are not cutting through the entire tree. Start with making cuts that are about a third of the way through the trunk of the tree.
• Use your wedges as necessary
  • While small trees are relatively straightforward, old-growth trees require special chainsaws that are the right size or wedges.
  • Wedges stop the pinch of the tree on the blade that adds unwanted pressure.

The Fell Cut

After you have notched on the correct side you’ll want to make the final cut. Slightly above the top of the notch created you’ll make a cut that is 180 degrees or a flat cut. The goal is not to connect these to but to allow the weight and pressure of the tree to cause the tree to lean. Once the tree starts to lean and move use your path to safety. If everything is done right the tree will fall in the line setup.

As always, cutting down a tree is a much larger task than most people imagine. If you are looking for a safe, efficient, and professional tree removal team in the northeast reach out to us to see how we can help.

What Is The Best Tree For Privacy?

While trees play an important role in the environment and can protect your home from the elements. They also can play an important role in making sure you have a private refuge and a place to relax. Oftentimes traditional wood or metal fences can fill this role but using trees can help take your backyard experience to a new level.

What Trees To Use

When looking into creating a living wall we often want to use trees that can live close together and in a way that doesn’t allow them to crowd other plants by taking too large a share of the resources. Evergreens, cypress, particularly Italian cypress, and larger flowering trees are perfect for creating clear boundaries.

Know Your Zone

While you may have your eye on a specific tree you found online that you would love to use. Most trees are tied to a hardiness zone. This takes into account where a tree can not only live but thrive and have healthy growth the way that you want it to. An orange tree that may flourish in Florida may not be a good fit in Montana. Even trees that would logically make sense from a climate perspective may not do well when looking at the soil composition. It’s important to make sure that whichever tree species you choose fits into the hardiness zone that you live in.

Know Your Space

A Red Oak does not always fit in a backyard. Making sure you have the appropriate space for the tree or trees you intend to plant is critical to making sure they have the resources they need.

Small backyards or areas that are in need of a designated space often use trees such as the Italian Cypress. The Italian Cypress can be planted fairly close to one another and grow mostly vertically rather than outward. This allows the ability to create a living fence using trees. The Italian Cypress is most known for its ability to create beautiful pathing for roads in Italy. Oftentimes in America, it is now used to create beautiful driveways, private yards, and to create small spaces for more intimate settings with friends and family.

On the other hand, if you have a large space in need of privacy willows can be a great choice. Long bowing branches on the weeping willow allow for quick and easy privacy. The Willow grows very quickly and can reach around 50 ft in height. Proper spacing to allow the trees to accommodate each other and grow at an optimal speed will have your property looking like an estate in no time. While Weeping Willows are primarily used for much larger properties as they can grow quite wide and tall. Individual or paired willows can be used for much smaller backyards. Creating a sense of privacy and tranquility that few other trees can match.

Adding something unique such as a cherry blossom tree in a small backyard can provide a pop of color that is not only extremely vibrant and beautiful but peaceful as well. For larger areas, rows of cherry blossoms trees can be used to create magical driveways or walkways that truly feel like you’re on a different planet. With their pink flowers spreading up to 20 feet creating an area that is hard to forget can be accomplished in a very short amount of time. Cherry Blossom trees are most commonly found in the 5-9 hardiness zones.

While the list of trees that can be used for privacy is extensive. Always keep a lookout for your hardiness zone, the size of your property, and what tree best suits the role you are trying to accomplish.

How To Check If A Tree Is Dangerous

While trees can provide incredible benefits to your yard or land they need to be taken care of properly, and can sometimes be even downright dangerous to you or your property if neglected. Here are some of the signs to look for to make sure your tree stays in proper health.

Broken Or Damaged Limbs

Broken or damaged limbs can be not only harmful to your tree but also can be a dead giveaway to a non-healthy tree. Though not all damages are so easy to spot with the eye. A Friendly Tree professional can often see cracks in a branch or a split in a limb where others cannot. A pro can also let you know how big of a problem this can be for the tree as well. By using magnification as well as potentially a crane we can get where you may not be able to. Assessing risk of falling branches, bad growth, and even other types of sickness.

Bark Discoloration

Just like a rash on our skin bark is a way for a tree to show that there may be underlying issues going on. While not as commonly checked, bark plays a critical role in the health of a tree and its overall growth. You may see bark starting to split where it otherwise shouldn’t (it shouldn’t anywhere). You may also notice bark that has begun to peel away or is missing entirely. If caught early on the issue can often be fixed, but once a fungus or insect has taken hold it can sometimes be impossible to remove. By keeping an eye on the bark of the tree we can make sure your tree will be around for years to come.

A Tree That Isn’t Foundationally Solid

The leaning tower in Italy may be famous but a leaning tree is something to look out for. Besides the obvious that it may fall onto your car or even home there are other worries as well. A professional will ask very important questions like, how long has the tree been leaning, has its lean gotten worse, and is the area that it is leaning a safe place for it to currently land?

While a leaning tree doesn’t mean a falling tree, especially with well-established trees often in windy areas. It does have the chance to damage property or cause injury and should be looked at by a professional.

Clear Damage To Root System

While oftentimes there can be root damage without you knowing through a host of issues. Underground water movement, chemical leaching into the soil, disease, insects, etc. There are some obvious signs to look for when checking out your tree.

• Your tree starting to die on certain sides
  • This could be caused by construction that happened weeks or even years ago.
• A drooping or wilting tree
  • Just like your indoor plants, without proper nutrition and care, they begin to droop and eventually die.
  • Making sure your tree is getting the nutrients it needs is critical, a droop is a telltale sign.
• Fewer leaves
  • A drop in foliage means that something has often gone on at the root system. Smaller, less vibrant, and a smaller quantity of leaves on your favorite tree should be looked into.

Dead limbs

Dead limbs can be as simple as an ice storm or an extra windy day that has caused a condition for the limb to go dead. This may be a lack of nutrients coming from the main tree and can be removed safely. Other times, dead limbs can be a much larger risk than just a falling branch. Your tree may be dying and this could be your only warning. It is important to remove all dead limbs from a tree as they can cause issues with the healthy parts of the tree. This can spread slowly over years or much quicker depending on the tree, the issue, and where the problem is located. Always properly remove dead limbs or call in an expert to help.

Regardless of your tree’s condition Friendly Tree is here to help. Reach out to us today to see how we can help your home look its best, and your trees feel their best!

What Are The Best Front Yard Trees?

Have you ever wondered what the best tree for your front yard should be? There are over 60,000+ different types of trees in the world and each one has its unique characteristics. Some are better for the east coast yard and this is one of our favorites.  

The Oak Tree

The oak tree is one of the most perfect trees of all time. Why? They are strong, sturdy in a storm, and can provide benefits to your entire property. From cooling down your home in the dog days of summer by blocking the sun for extended periods of time. To providing shelter to wildlife in your neighborhood.

While some homeowners worry about the size of limbs of oak trees and the potential for falling during winter storms causing damage. With proper tree maintenance and care, they can provide an overwhelming list of benefits with little risk.

With over 600 different types of oak species, there is a breathtakingly large variety of oak trees available to match your home and property perfectly. Oak trees can also be deciduous or evergreen trees. With Deciduous oak tree’s leaves changing in the fall and falling off. Other oak species, evergreen ones, continue to have green leaves year-round.

Depending on your style or preference you may prefer a tree that changes colors along with the rest of your neighborhood. If you are looking for more privacy or sheltering benefits for your property an evergreen tree may be the way to go.

What Size Oak Are You Looking For?

Depending on the size of your yard or your goals for your tree you may want to look at different species as well. You may know you aren’t in your forever home and are looking for a quick-growing oak to add character to your yard for better resell value. The bur oak grows on average of 7-8 inches a year and would still look like a sapling 5 years later. While a Nuttall oak can grow up to 4 feet a year, and sometimes more! Planning your trees to fit the needs of your family, property, and future is key.

Did you know that some of the shortest oaks can be just 30 feet tall? If you live in a ranch-style home with a minimal yard you may look for a Japanese evergreen oak. If you happen to have a large amount of land or want a statement piece that will make friends and family use their sunroof on their way down the driveway. A white oak may be exactly what you are looking for. White oaks can reach over 100 feet in height and are beautiful trees in their early stages and as they mature.

Oak Tree Maintenance

With proper care and maintenance, oak trees can last not only a lifetime but for generations to come. Most oaks prefer the following:

• Well-draining soil
• Full sun all day every day
• Seasonal changes

• While some trees do well year-round with very little temperature change. Oak’s often do well with the natural changing of the seasons.
• Receiving precipitation in the winter can allow for no watering is needed for your oak tree during the colder months!

• Pruning
  • Depending on the type of oak you get this will change.
  • Deciduous oaks often need annual pruning to make sure they are growing in the direction you want and maintain great tree health.

• Limbs can become diseased or grow too large for their own good, leaving them susceptible during winter storms of breaking.

• Evergreen oaks can often go a lifetime without ever receiving a pruning. If you’re looking for a low-maintenance tree that provides great privacy an evergreen oak may be the perfect choice for you.

• Fertilizer and Tree Nutritional Health
  • Just like babies and kids, tree nutrition at the younger stages is extremely important.
  • Fertilizing early spring and in the fall are perfect times to help trees reach their full potential and mature trees continue to stay healthy through all seasons.

Going Traditional

And If you want to go traditional the oak is the perfect tree as the red oak is the official state tree of New Jersey! The red oak is a fast-growing tree that provides a large amount of shade, beautiful colors in the fall, and needs very little maintenance in comparison to other more meticulous oaks.

No matter which tree you decide from our list of options an oak tree is a perfect tree for your New Jersey home. While other options may exist, the oak in all its varieties is hard to beat.

Arbor Day 2021

Arbor Day has never been more important than in 2021. With changes in climate being a topic on many people’s minds, and the changes to our local environments, everyone can do their part by repopulating their areas with tree planting. From your local neighborhood, all the way to the Amazon Rainforest, planting a tree this Arbor day can help the environment and make your front yard more visually appealing.

How Did Arbor Day Start?

Originally started In the 1870’s Arbor Day has been radically transformed and has taken on a very different meaning. What initially was meant as a program for Nebraska to start repopulating lost trees, has turned into an international holiday that millions participate in every year.

The Morton family moved to Nebraska in the mid 1800’s and quickly started to recognize the importance of trees and plants in their surroundings. J. Sterling Morton, the father in said family, began writing and editing for the first newspaper in Nebraska and often mentioned that more trees would provide benefits to the land and its residents. The state government of Nebraska took notice and eventually made it a state holiday. The first of its kind! Other surrounding states quickly saw the benefits and started the tradition of planting trees each year on the last Friday in April as well. Today, all 50 states and Puerto Rico now have state holidays for Arbor Day along with 43+ more countries celebrating nationally around the globe!

The Benefits of Planting Trees this Arbor Day

Planting trees around your house has benefits to your wallet too, not only can it increase the value of your property by 7-19% according to HGTV, and they can also help with keeping your house cool in the summer and warm in the winter by up to 25% according to the Department of Energy.

Proper tree conservation and planting help with soil conservation and nutrition, water filtering, reduces dust storms, grows edible food, captures carbon, and can protect crops and animals from hard-to-handle weather.

Tree roots are one of nature’s ways of purifying water whether around your house, for rivers and streams, they also stop erosion from happening which can change the topography of the land quickly to keep your yard looking great!

While also helping the environment, trees can help us in other ways too! Trees often provide commonly eaten nuts and fruits for you and your family to eat. Many people remember growing up with fruit trees in their parents or grandparents back yards. In addition to the benefits to your bottom line mentioned above there’s nothing quite like recreating those memories with your own children and seeing the “fruits” of your labor with a fruit or nut tree of your own.

Changes in Climate are Expected

What matters now more than ever when it comes to tree planting is preparing your home for changes in climate. Even one tree can change the ecosystem around your house, providing shelter for local animals like hummingbirds, and producing shade to keep your family and pets cool in the summer.  Being apart of Arbor Day 2021 goes much further than your yard though. Over 250 million Arbor Day trees have been planted with over 43 different countries participating! All the way to Egypt actively fighting back the encroaching desertification with the Great Green Wall. To China’s Arbor Day on March 12th with weddings commonly being held the day before to start a new relationship and new life with the planting of trees.

No matter your what or why for planting trees this Arbor Day, Friendly Tree can help, and you can have an impact to your bottom line, property value, and local ecosystem. If you are interested Contact Us Here to see how we can get you the trees you need this Arbor Day, or any day this year!