With Snowstorm 2011 just ended, most of us are thinking about the basics - digging out the driveways, sidewalks, and roads. We should also take a minute to stand up & rest against the shovel, and look around at our trees. The heaviest snow loads on their branches can cause some breakage. This is especially true of evergreens, with their needles that can help hold a lot of snow, and multiple-stem trees like birches, whose trunks are often a little less than vertical.
It can be important to remove the snow from the branches, especially the wetter, heavier snows. But be careful not to just knock it off with a broom - that can break branches, too. Upward strokes, gently shaking the branches is safer for the tree. A firm, gentle tap from beneath can jostle some of the snow from the tree limb.
Photo courtesy Joseph O'Brien, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org
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