Why we treat Ash trees every year instead of every two years.

A question I have been asked a number of times. “What are the chances of my tree dying even if I treat?”

My answer to that is always the same. “It depends on the treatment method, chemical, rate used, and timing of treatments.” My job as your Tree Doctor is to assure that the service and treatments, we provide to your trees is as effective as possible. How would you feel if we treated your trees every two years for six years and your tree died from the Emerald Ash Borer anyway? I know I would feel like a failure. You would feel like you just wasted six years and hundreds of dollars on a tree for no reason, never to call us back again, because we failed you. That doesn’t set well with me.

If you have read the posts on our website “Why I don’t use Tree-age” and “Don’t Drill” you already understand we use the most effective and least damaging injection system on the market today. So you can understand my point of view on treating every year, let’s look at the label for the product we use to treat Ash trees. All the product labels for treating Ash trees have disclaimers concerning tree health and environmental conditions that affect the effectiveness of the treatment. They all also state it treats “up to two years” Don’t you just love disclaimers? Let’s dig a little deeper. Here is the actual wording of the label.

“At the time of initial application, make note of the health level of each tree. Re-evaluate level in treated trees at 12-month intervals to determine the need for additional treatment. Consider applying preventative applications 12-36 months after the initial injection. Trees in high pest pressure areas, or highly valued trees should be evaluated for retreatment 12 months after each treatment.”

I don’t know what that tells you, but for me it says anytime you go beyond annual treatments there is a chance the Emerald Ash Borer could still damage your tree. There is no doubt we are in a high pest pressure area. Any tree you decide to treat in my mind is a “highly valued tree” because you are spending your hard-earned money to protect your investment and value in that tree. Are you willing to roll the dice to save a few bucks? Or do you want the peace of mind knowing your investment is protected to the best of our ability and knowledge?

If you take the common sense and cost vs. value approach like hundreds of our customers already have, you can rest easy knowing your trees are under the Tree Doctors care.

Your Trees Doctor