Avon Arborists Tend to Trees October Storm Damaged

Do you think Avon residents had it bad during the ?

The trees suffered too and many are still struggling.

Hundreds of people from Hartford to Canton have since called self-proclaimed tree doctors Jenna and Terry Ryan, of New England Arborists, for help pruning hangers – dangling branches – and branches blocking driveways. They've also sought help with property cleanup and replacing ruined plants.

“It was total emergency recon,” said Jenna Ryan, who handles the administrative side of the business.

Ryan said last week that her husband, who does the tree work, is “still dealing with some hangers in people’s yards.”

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“There wasn’t anything anybody could have done to avoid this situation, she said. “All you can really do is prune out the dead wood and things like that. The problem was that the snow was wet and heavy and all the leaves were still on the trees.”

On top of losing power during the surprise fall snowstorm and taking care of her family, Ryan said that the phone was ringing off the hook. She frequently scrambled to her car to charge her cell phone so clients could reach her. Some callers were put on a waiting list due to the high demand. The Ryans assessed “who was worse off” to prioritize, for instance responding first to homes with branches dangling over roofs before yards with branches on the ground.

Downed trees strewn across roads also made it difficult to reach some clients, she said.

The Ryans have never seen anything do such severe damage to trees since they established New England Arborists in June 2008. Terry, who used to work for another local tree company, found a niche that inspired him to open his own business. He observed that “homeowners are very attached to their trees kind of like they are to their homes,” Jenna Ryan said.

New England Arborists specializes in restorative pruning, injecting medicine capsules into tree bases so the trees suck up antibiotics, spraying for fungal and insect issues, and cabling trees to right them, according to Ryan.

“We’re going back and fixing incorrect prunes that were made in the haste of the storm cleanup,” Ryan said, Ryan said. “We try to say that removal is the absolute last option,” Ryan said.

In a strange year for weather, winter was unusually mild. That has meant more insects and fungal and bacterial issues for trees. New England Arborists has been treating yard perimeters, planting beds and pachysandra around decks and pools with tick and mosquito spray, Ryan said.

“Nothing really had the chance to die off,” she said.

Trees are growing new leaves and plants are blooming a couple months early this year.

“It comes all full circle to that tree that they wanted to save and that they didn’t want to have the out-of-town guys just chop down and run away with,” Ryan said.

Terry and Jenna Ryan grew up in Avon and Simsbury, respectively, and have lived in the Farmington Valley for a long time. Their business slogan – “protect and preserve” – not only applies to the trees they treat, but also to their home.

“This place is near and dear to our heart,” Ryan said. “We’d like to see it stay nice.”

Ryan said the following will be important this spring to maintain plant and tree health:

• Mulch: "I would say this year, mulch is going to be your friend because it doesn't seem like it's going to be a very wet year and you want to keep as much moisture as you can to the plants to ensure that they are healthy," Ryan said.

• Deep-root fertilizing: "That'll just give them an extra boost and help their immune system so that they can spend this year fixing themselves," Ryan said.

Other issues she said to expect this year are:

• More acorns and pine cones: "That's the plant's way of saying, 'I'm stressed out. I need to reproduce myself so I don't go by the wayside.'"

• Falling tree branches: More limbs may fall as trees and hangers dry out, Ryan said, be careful and "look up."

For more information, you can reach New England Arborists at 860-677-6321 or visit the company's website at newenglandarborists.net.