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Storm Preparation
TreesForYou • July 1, 2021

Trees have withstood bad weather events for millions of years. Trees have prevailed against the effects of wind, rain, ice, and lightning because of their inherent design and because of their ability, in most cases, to overcome the damage resulting from these weather events. Trees produce reaction wood inside and outside of the tree that helps them cope with leans, wounds and the twisting and torqueing that comes from high winds. Examples of reaction wood are tension wood, compression wood and flexure wood.

Stump — Clearwater, FL — TreesForYou.com

The development of woundwood on the exterior and compartmentalization boundaries on the interior are examples of reaction wood that helps a tree to survive the decay that results if a tree experiences wounding during a weather event.


Trees fail in storms in three primary ways:


(1). Decay in roots, branches and trunks: Wind creates energy that moves branches. During a major storm the force is great and the energy travels down branches and is disseminated down the trunk and to the base of the tree. Rain adds weight to the canopy and softens the soil that contains the roots of a tree. The energy generated by the wind will “find” areas weakened by decay and may cause failure at that point.

(2). Codominant/included bark defect in unions: If the structural defect of codominant stems with included bark is present, especially in large branches or in the lower trunk, these areas may fail due to the force exerted by high winds and the presence of decay in the included unions.

(3). Compromised anchorage of the root system: Generally, the most catastrophic failure occurs when the whole tree uproots and falls over. This type of failure can occur when a tree is growing near a root barrier such as a building foundation or a curb. In this case the tree may be properly anchored in one direction but compromised in another. Whole tree failure can also occur when the roots of a tree have been severed, for example, when utility lines have been trenched. Decay is also a major culprit. Decay in structural roots may not be visible above the surface. A large percentage of whole tree failure occurs because roots have been injured and decay enters the wound and progressively destroys healthy roots.

Fallen Trees — Clearwater, FL — TreesForYou.com

In technical terms, failure of a whole tree or parts of a tree occurs when the load bearing capacity is exceeded. The important first step in avoiding damage from tree related failure It to have your trees assessed for structural integrity. Many defects that cause failure of branches or whole trees are insidious and not observable to an untrained eye. The second step is to have remedial work, if needed, completed.


I recommend that the person assessing your tree to be an ISA Certified Arborist with the Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ). Alan Mayberry at TreesForYou has these credentials, 38 years of experience and has assessed over 100,00 trees for health and structure. Please contact Treesforyou.com today for a professional and free assessment.
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