Dead tree removal services  Auckland

So why do trees die?

• Prolonged Drought- Not enough water being pulled by the roots to be stored as carbohydrates which stops the tree performing photosynthesis.

• Excessive drainage- Not enough water for the roots to collect for example trees on a steep slope.

• Prolonged Rain- The ground and roots become saturated and are unable to get oxygen for root respiration.

• Poor drainage- Too much water that the roots become saturated.

• Compacted soil- The ground becomes hard to penetrate with the minerals and nutrients the roots need. The majority of the roots that collect these minerals are in the top 300mm of soil.

• Root damage through excavations- Damage to roots prevents the uptake of nutrients and minerals.  It can also affect tree stability and gives an entry point for fungal infection.

• Tree diseases- There are many diseases that trees can catch.  These can be caused by spores transported by foot like kauri dieback, insects such as the beetle that causes Dutch Elm disease and even by the wind for example myrtle rust.

• Lack of nutrients- Sometimes the quality of the soil will be bad and the tree cannot get enough nutrients from its roots.

• Human activity- Trees can be poisoned on purpose or by mistake by the use of herbicides.  This causes the leaves to struggle to pull water from the ground and reduces photosynthesis.

So why do trees blow over?

There are a couple of reasons why dead trees blow over easier.  As you can see from the above reasons of why trees die the majority of the causes affect the roots.  The roots not only collect the nutrients but help anchor the tree into the ground.  If the tree dies the roots die with it and the anchor system is extremely compromised.

High winds

In a strong wind the standing tree acts as a large sail and the constant moving back and forth slowly weakens the roots until one day they break.  You can think of it like bending a stick back and forth. It doesn’t take long before it snaps.  It may take years of this movement before the tree fails but there is no way to judge this until it is too late.

Excessive rain

Generally stormy weather also brings rain.  Excessive rain saturates the ground weakening the base the anchor roots have to attach too.  Some soils drain better than others the same as some species handle wet ground better than others.  Excessively wet ground combined with a weakened root system caused by a dead tree is a dangerous combination.

So what can i do?

The longer you leave your dead trees the more dangerous they become and the more dangerous and sometimes costly they become for us to deal with.  We recommend contacting one of our Auckland arborists if you notice a tree in decline as quite often through pruning, mulching or other techniques we may be able to save the tree. 

If this is not possible we recommend all dead or dying trees to be removed within 1 year of the first signs of decline.  Do not worry though if you have had dead trees standing for years as Tree Kings arborists have the skills to deal to these safely and efficiently.

After calling in one of our certified arborists to deal with the tree on your property you will be left with a stump. Sometimes this stump can include all the root ball that has been pulled up from the ground. The only way to efficiently deal with this is to get Tree Kings stump removal team in to grind this away for you. Check out our blog on stump removal here.