Mowers and trimmers can damage trees and may cause dieback, disease or decay. Image: J. O’Brien, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org.
It’s summer in North Carolina and that means many homeowners are pulling out the mowers on a regular basis to keep their grass trimmed throughout the growing season. While mowers may make your lawns look great though, they have the potential to make your trees look terrible. Mowers and trimmers have the potential to damage trees, causing mechanical injury.
Trees can’t really “heal” the way you and I think of healing. That’s why when a branch is trimmed, a permanent scar remains on the tree rather than new bark growing over it. Instead, trees compartmentalize damage so that it does not injure other parts of the tree. When trees are injured over and over or injured severely, it could lead to dieback, disease, decay and in some cases, death. They just may not be able to get over the injury you cause them.
So, while you’re out in the yard this summer, cut your trees a break by not cutting them with power equipment. Take extra care when mowing or trimming around your trees. Another option is to mulch around your trees. Not only will this result in a healthier tree with better soil moisture available, but you will not need to mow or trim against the main stem of the tree.