For those who have been following our company – either via this blog, Facebook, or another source – you know that we are in the process of offering many new tree care services. We have spent the last two years reading, studying, earning certifications, and attending classes in order to learn the skills and information necessary to offer these services.

With 2012 under way, we are finally ready to begin offering each new service. Today we are featuring an exciting new segment: tree root care. Roots are vitally important to the health and longevity of a tree. While most tree services focus on the canopy of a tree, many overlook its underground component – the root system. Yet when a tree displays problems such as disease, pest infestation, dead branches, or overall decline, these can often be traced back to issues within the roots. Once the root system is damaged, the tree will begin declining in health, to the point where it could die.

To learn more, be sure to read our page about Tree Root Care

In the meantime, enjoy the below video the we recently created. It features aeration and de-compaction of the soil around an oak tree. Before you begin watching, here is the background:

In this video, the soil surrounding the oak tree was badly compacted. When compaction occurs above the key structural roots of a tree, it diminishes the available soil pores (air spaces) that hold oxygen. This limits the oxygen diffusion rate in the soil and results in root suffocation. But a tree’s roots must have oxygen in order to grow. As such, compaction can severely harm a tree. Aerating and de-compacting the soil in the critical root zone will fix the problem. As you will see in this video, we do so using an Air Spade. This tool blasts out air at over 1200 MPH. This is powerful enough to break up the soil, but does not harm the roots. Once the aeration is done, we cover the area with mulch. The mulch helps trap moisture, regulate temperature, and keep weeds and grass from growing.