Did you know that Groundhog Turf Care also specializes in Urban Tree Care? You might ask, “Urban Tree Care? Is that even a thing?” Don’t trees in the city take care of themselves?
Urban green space has been a priority city planning and urban development for quite some time. City ordinances will require new parking lots to have a certain number of trees planted per square foot. Both city streets and rural neighborhoods have specifications for shade tree planting. Although they are not plant specialists, building architects will often spec certain trees to be planted around their buildings and include boiler-plate planting instructions in their plans.
We believe this is a good thing. Our world is becoming more conscious of the environment and the ecological benefit of trees in the urban landscape. What looks good on paper, however, does not always play out in reality. Once the planning and planting is done and the property is sold, commercial properties are often managed by budget-driven maintenance contracts – and – other than a little pruning – the trees are often neglected.
It takes an arborist with a specific skill set to recognize pest problems in trees before they weaken the tree to the point of no return. Tree care is well-established in the residential market. Homeowners have a vested interest in making sure that every plant in their yard is healthy.
Unfortunately, Plant Health Care programs are sorely lacking in urban areas and commercial spaces. These urban trees are subjected to:
- intense heat from asphalt
- road salt
- restricted root zones
- insufficient water most of the time
- vandalism
- damage from trimmers and automobiles
- soil compaction from foot traffic
When you think about it, it’s amazing that city trees survive at all! With a little care and attention, these trees can actually thrive and begin providing real value to the environment they are planted in.
At Groundhog Turf Care, we are on a crusade to save the urban tree! We ask that the next time you’re in a parking lot take notice of the trees planted there. If they look unhealthy say something to the management of the store and have them give us a call.