Take Advantage of Fall Fertilization Season

Healthy Trees for the Client, Healthier Pocket Book for You

With winter quickly approaching, many tree companies are hustling to keep up with the summer rush of removals and pruning work. It seems October and November always brings the biggest rush ' other than in the spring. Pretty much any time leaves are forming or leaves are falling, customers notice their trees! What if there was a way to make a little bit more out of the fall rush and make trees healthier at the same time? Fall fertilization is a great thing that can help boost the health of the trees, especially after they have been pruned. Additionally, fall fertilization it is a great added up sell for almost every pruning job!

When it really comes down to it, a soil test is recommended when you are looking to amend the soil with a fertilizer or additive, but I'm pretty sure we can all agree that most urban soils are lacking somewhere in the nutrient department. Arborjet makes a great product called NutriRoot that supplies the soil with essential minerals like Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, as well as seaweed extract for battling micronutrient deficiencies. All of this helps boost soil content and helps trees store some extra energy for the long winter ahead. NutriRoot works very well when planting new trees, as well as transplanting trees to different areas of a landscape.

Go Deep

NutriRoot can be used as a root drench or can also be deep root injected into the soil. Deep root injection or deep root fertilization can be a misguided name because the injection sites aren't always DEEP in the ground. Most absorbing roots are found within the top 6-8 inches of soil, so technically when we are feeding these roots, we aren't actually going all that deep in the soil!' The public often has a misconception that tree roots grow just as deep in the ground as the tree is tall; this is more than likely where the Deep Root Fertilization name came from.

By using a deep root injector or feeder like the Nu-Arbor 1 Two Root Injector you can easily carry the fertilizer or insecticide around with you to each tree you plan on injecting. The back pack can be filled with nutrients and the injector can easily be inserted into the ground 4-8 inches for adequate root feeding below the grass cover. Grass in the landscape takes up much of the broadcast fertilizers that are spread in the spring and fall. The root injector helps get below that and easily feed your tree roots.'

Break Through the Hardpan

When using these injection systems, the tree and soil also benefit from the fracturing of the soil which helps with decompaction. Most urban sites have been back filled with clay-based top soil that creates a hardpan on the surface of the soil. Once the sun comes out and the rains hold off, you have a rock hard surface that won't let air or water to the roots. Now, by coming in with some deep root fertilization, you are breaking up the hardpan, plus getting vital water and nutrients to the root system before a long winter sets in.'

Look into some of these great products and see if they are something that you can introduce to your business to help make trees healthier, as well raise your profit margin on some jobs near the end of the year. Let us know what types of fertilization you are doing in the comments below!