Winter Watering for Your Trees
Mark Mortensen, ISA Certified Arborist, RM-1002A
There seems to be questions about winter watering for your trees.
Some people hire a company to do this for them. I feel this is an unnecessary expense.
Some people will use a probe type “root feeder.” A very common mistake with this method is inserting the probe too deep in the soil. Most of the trees feeder roots will be in the top 6-8 inches of the soil.
My suggestion is to water the entire landscape once a month with a lawn sprinkler. Water the lawn, all the shrubs and flower gardens and everything, including the trees, will benefit. Water deep, getting the moisture down 6 – 8 inches. This can be checked using a soil probe or even an old screw driver.
I even recommend watering rock beds and flagstone. Water everywhere the tree roots may be. The roots will be going out 2-3 times out further than the tree is tall.
Most insect and disease problems occur from environmental stress. Providing moisture during the winter will greatly aid in having a healthy landscape.
Of course, if we have a blanket of snow all this is unnecessary. But the snow here in the Denver metro area doesn’t last forever.