How Trees Could be Pollen You Down: Asthma and Allergy Awareness Month

Allergies are a wide-sweeping problem that affect around 50 million people in the United States, representing 30 percent of adults and 40 percent of children, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Hundreds of species of plants release pollen to which people are allergic, and many of the culprits are trees.

Pollen and Your Nose (+ Other Parts of the Body)

An allergen is anything that causes a histamine response in the body, which is when your body attacks foreign pathogens. If your immune system recognizes pollen as a pathogen, then congratulations: You have an allergy!

Unfortunately, late winter and early spring are the high seasons for tree allergies. During these sneeziest of weeks and months – starting as early as January and continuing into April, or later – trees release tons of the stuff, which wafts easily on the breeze. The good news? Only about a hundred species of trees actually cause allergies.

The Allergy-est Trees

Some of the worst culprits include:

  • Alder
  • Ash
  • Aspen
  • Beech
  • Birch
  • Box elder
  • Cedar
  • Cottonwood
  • Date palm
  • Elm
  • Hickory
  • Juniper
  • Mountain elder
  • Mulberry
  • Oak
  • Pecan
  • Phoenix Palm
  • Red Maple
  • Silver Maple
  • Willow

This is by no means an exhaustive list, so when you go to purchase trees at the nursery, make sure to ask if they cause allergic reactions. If you can, avoid them.

Protect Yourself

If you want more pollen protection from trees causing allergies, you can take a few simple steps. Stay out of the yard during midday and afternoon, as these are the worst times for pollen. Try to get outside after rainstorms, which clear pollen from the air, and always wear gardening gloves, so that when you take them off and scratch your nose, fingers are pollen-free. Wear sunglasses to protect your eyes and, if you can stand it, a bandana to cover the nose.

Get Trees Under Control

If you’re hoping to avoid an allergy onslaught in coming years, you would do well to contact a tree removal business. They can help you trim and prune your trees to reduce the number of branches, and therefore the amount of pollen being released, as well as make your trees lovelier to look at.

Companies such as Premier Tree Solutions in Atlanta can also help remove brush and suckers, tree starts that may grow up into full-blown pollen producers. If you’re looking for storm cleanup, crane services, or stump removal, we can help you there too – just give us a call today at 404-252-6448 or contact us here.

Be a Georgia Tree Know-It-All: Sugar Maple

Get to know Georgia’s beautiful array of trees and how you can take care of your own! Each month, we feature some of the most popular trees in the state. For July, we are showcasing the Sugar Maple. The Sugar Maple is a strong tree that can grow between 60 to 75 feet tall and looks amazing during the fall months. Learn more information about the Sugar Maple below!

Sugar Maple

Fruit-Bearing and Flower-Blooming: Tree Care for All

While both are lovely options for your garden, fruit and flower trees have different needs if they’re to live long and healthy lives. The most important aspect of caring for fruit trees, obviously, is making sure they produce the maximum amount of large, fully ripe fruit. Flowering trees, on the other hand, are prized for their showy blooms in the spring, summer, or even fall. Perfect your care routine and you’ll get the most out of each for life.

Prune for Effect

Your pruning goals vary with the type of tree being pruned. Flowering trees are valued for the huge show they put on in spring or summer. If they bloom in spring, you should prune them directly after the blooms fade, whereas summer-flowering trees should be pruned in winter after the coldest weeks have passed. Remove branches that don’t add to the overall shape and beauty of the tree.

Fruit trees, however, should be pruned for the best production. That means removing all but a few of the upright limbs, leaving enough for photosynthesis and creating a light and bright canopy. Horizontal limbs, which are usually the ones that bear the most fruit, should be cleared out enough to create more light and airflow. Reducing crowding also ensures the tree has enough resources to offer toward each fruit, which will result in the tastiest fruit.

Water When Necessary

Fruit and flower trees have similar watering needs, with one exception: fruit trees need lots of water while they’re setting fruit, or else their goods will be small and dry. No bueno. Here’s a handy guide to watering, which you can follow for both types. In addition, ensure that fruits such as peaches, apricots, apples, and cherries get a thorough soaking whenever the top 10 inches of soil go dry.  

Fertilize Well

Fertilizing is roughly equivalent for fruit and flowering trees as well. Flowering trees should be fertilized in early spring, while fruit trees can be fertilized multiple times starting in spring and until midsummer.  

If you want to take the best care of your trees – fruit, flower, or other – you might want the help of an expert team. Just go ahead and call Premier Tree Solutions at 404-252-6448, a top-rated tree removal business in Atlanta. We assist with trimming, pruning, storm cleanup, stump and branch grinding, branch clearing, and tree and debris removal. No matter what you need, if it has to do with a tree, we’ve got you covered.

 

Trees That Just Want to Have Sun: Best Summertime Tree Choices

So summer has rolled around, and you’re wondering whether it’s too late to put a few saplings in the ground. Good news: it isn’t. In fact, summer is a great time to plant trees because it gives them plenty of time to adapt to their new surroundings before winter hits. However, that doesn’t mean all tree needs are the same.

A Species Surprise

Most people assume that only very heat-tolerant species can be planted in the summer. But guess what? ‘Tisn’t so! Any tree can technically be planted in summer, which is good news if you want to grow a privacy hedge or install that statement tree during this planting season. However, needs do vary a bit between deciduous and evergreen trees.

Deciduous Versus Evergreen Plantin’ Time

Both deciduous and evergreen trees can be planted in summer, as well as spring. However, while deciduous trees can be planted in fall, you should confine your evergreen planting to summer, or the first month of fall at the latest. This is because they need considerably more time to adjust to soil temperatures than deciduous trees do.

Protecting Branchy Babes

When you do plant trees in summer, however, you have to be extra careful. They need a lot of water to get established and can burn easily, especially the smaller saplings. Make sure to plant trees at the correct depth to prevent damage to the trunk and ensure an adequate root system. Water them once a day for two weeks after planting, then once weekly after that for a year. Thereafter, you can water them thoroughly whenever the top 10 inches of soil become dry.

No matter what time of year you plant, you should ensure the safety and longevity of your trees by spacing them appropriately. This should be based on their space requirements when they are full-grown as opposed to when they are small.

Arboreal Assistance

Not sure how to get your trees in the ground with the best chance of a healthy outcome? No problem! If you need help, call Premier Tree Solutions. We’re a growing tree removal business based in Atlanta, Georgia, and specializing in a number of areas, including:

  • Tree removal
  • Tree trimming
  • Tree pruning
  • Storm cleanup
  • Stump grinding
  • Branch clearing
  • Debris removal

… and more. Any time you need your trees cared for, we want to help you out. All you have to do is call 404-252-6448 or email us here to set up a consultation or service today.