3 ways to make your trees grow better

Trees are a great way to make your property look beautiful, and they also provide many benefits. They provide a yard with shading, privacy, and so much more. As such, many people with a bare lawn, or those just looking to fill some space, plant a tree with the hopes that it will provide all of these benefits as quickly as possible. However, simply planting a tree is not going to be enough. Tree growth, when left to grow with no help, is slow- even if you get a tree that is marketed as a fast-growing tree species. To help encourage your trees to grow faster, we compiled arborist-recommended advice to help your trees thrive!

Make Sure Your Trees Are Getting Enough Water

All life needs water to survive, but for trees, the amount of supplemental water it gets can determine how fast it grows. Most trees need to be watered 1-2 times a week, especially if your region is in a period of drought or just low rainfall.

However, you want to be careful of over watering the tree, as it can prevent your tree from getting enough oxygen. A way to look out for this and avoid this on your young trees is by looking for yellow or pale tree growth, fragile leaves, and making sure the base of your tree is consistently damp.

Check to See if Your Trees Have Enough Space

If a tree is restricted to growing in a small space, it will likely grow slower than you expect or want. This is because trees need room to grow and for their roots to spread. They also need adequate amounts of nutrients to sustain faster growth.
When planted too close to other trees, the young tree would have to risk having the nutrients in the soil stolen by those other trees. A good rule of thumb is to keep your trees three feet away from everything else from all sides!
If your trees are too close together, call Gray Brothers and let us help you make the right decision for your yard!

Mulch

Plant species such as grass and weeds also act as competition for the trees. They can steal the nutrients and water meant for your tree, and hinder the tree’s ability to grow. Mulching around the tree you just planted will help prevent this from happening. The mulched area should be spread under the tree’s canopy at least 5 inches out and around the entire base and should be about 3 inches deep.

Mulch is biodegradable and will need to be replaced at least 2 times a year to help your tree grow faster. The type of mulch you should use, whether organic mulch or inorganic mulch, depends on your tree and soil composition, which you can assess with a simple soil test. Mulch provides a cooling effect to the soil, can improve soil texture, and decreases weed prevalence.
Gray Brothers Tree Service knows the importance of mulch and being conscientious of the environment. We take all the wood from our job sites to be recycled and turned into mulch!

Other Things to Keep in Mind

A new tree is fragile and requires the right type of care. All the tips listed above will help keep your tree healthy from its root system to its leaves. If you want to make trees grow faster over short periods of time, it is important to follow these tips and keep a few other things in mind:

1. Protect the tree roots: Roots need to be in good soil and can even benefit from fertilizers that can stimulate the roots. To have healthy, fast-growing trees, the roots of your tree must be protected.
2. Protect the tree truck: Damaging a tree trunk by hitting it with weed killers and bumping it to it with various machinery can affect the tree’s structural integrity, and can let pests infect the otherwise healthy trees in your yard!

Overall, it is important to know that different trees have different requirements for fast growth, but the basics tend to be the same! Once you find the right tree for you, make sure to follow these tips! We want to make sure you reap all the benefits of planting trees in your yard, from the trees providing natural shade, to adding property value to the land.

If you are in need of a consultation to assess the safety of where you are planting your trees, or if you need to remove some old trees from your yard to make room for the new ones, call Gray Brothers Tree Service! We want to help you make your space just how you would want!