Spring is coming and as you prepare your home and yard for the warmer weather, don't neglect to prepare your trees. There are a few things that you should do to prepare your trees for spring to ensure that they stay healthy and strong.

Inspect

Spring is the perfect time to inspect your trees for any damage or disease. Because your trees are bare, damage and disease are much easier to spot than if you inspect your trees later in the season when they have all their leaves. 

Before your trees start to bloom, take the time to carefully inspect branches for disease and damage. Signs of disease in your trees include bleached out or yellow branches, fungus and lack of buds. 

To check for dead branches, break a small twig from your tree. Break that twig in half and inspect the interior. If it's green, your tree is healthy and alive. If it easily snaps and the interior is dark and dry, you can assume that branch is dead and have it removed. 

Prune 

There are a few reasons why you should prune your trees in the spring rather than later in the season. For one, it is easier to trim the branches of your tree when they aren't obstructed and weighed down by leaves. Secondly, pruning in the colder weather reduces the chance of disease or infection in the open wounds left by pruning.

Prune any dead branches from your tree. You should also prune branches that are too close together that look like they might start rubbing together. If you don't feel comfortable pruning your trees on your own, any local tree trimming service can do it for you. 

Determine Soil PH Levels and Adjust

In order for your trees to stay healthy and strong, you should ensure that the soil surrounding them has the proper PH levels. Most trees flourish best in soil that has a PH level between 4.5 and 7.5, but it will depend on the type of trees you have. 

You can buy soil testing PH strips at any gardening store and then test your soil. If you notice that your soils PH levels need to be raised, you should add lime to the soil. If your soils PH needs to be lowered, you should add soil with alkaline or use manure in order to lower the PH. Changing the PH level of your soil takes time, so be sure to test your soil once a week and applying the proper treatment until the right PH levels are reached. 

As spring approaches, don't neglect to prepare your trees in order to prevent any problems during the warmer months!  To learn more, contact a company like Treetime Inc.