How to Protect Your Trees from Ice Storm Damage

Ice storms are commonplace in Minnesota, but if you’re in another part of the country, you might not be as used to them. Wherever you’re located, they are a significant threat to your trees, which can result in expensive property damage from fallen branches. Check out these tips from the experts at Wilderness Land Clearing to learn how to protect your trees from ice storm damage.

Has an ice storm toppled trees onto your home? Contact our tree removal team in the Twin Cities area at (763) 568-3007. If you’re closer to the Brainerd Lakes area, call (800) 630-2960. Either way, you can send a contact form straight to our emai

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Identify Vulnerable Trees and Branches

It is essential to learn how to identify vulnerable trees and branches so that you can take preventative maintenance steps. Keep an eye out for these signs of vulnerability in your trees:

Trees with more than one central leader (main stem) are more prone to splitting in high winds and when covered with the weight of ice.
Slim, upright evergreen trees like arborvitae and juniper are susceptible to severe bending under the weight of ice.
Trees with a clump of multiple stems are typically weaker than trees with one main stem.
Trees with narrow branch crotches can be more at risk of losing branches in a storm.

Preventative Tree Maintenance Tips

Now that you know what to look for, check out these preventative tree maintenance tips to help your trees weather an ice storm.

Prune Properly

Eliminating multiple leaders, removing weak branches, and avoiding crowded tree crowns are all pruning strategies that can help prevent falling branches and trees under the weight of ice. Proper pruning is a year-round process that can be aided by an arborist or professional tree company like Wilderness Land Clearing.

Provide Extra Support

Slim trees can be prepared for a storm with some extra support. If you’ve identified trees that may be at a greater risk of damage from severe bending under the weight of ice, you can tie the tree to a length of pipe or sturdy lumber secured to the ground. This gives the tree some extra “backbone” to help it bear the weight.

Use Protective Fabric

Smaller trees and evergreens can be wrapped with protective fabric like burlap to help in an ice storm. The cloth helps keep too much ice from accruing on individual branches, instead helping distribute the weight evenly across the entire tree.

Contact Wilderness Land Clearing Today

Don’t wait for an ice storm to prepare your trees; use the tips above to help limit damage and clean up after the storm. Wilderness Land Clearing is based in frigid central Minnesota, and we have many years of experience dealing with winter tree hazards.

When not in our home state, we travel the country to help with tree cleanup after ice storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Our experts can help with winter tree preparation or storm cleanup if it comes to that. Contact us today for a free quote!

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