Tips for Storm Damaged Trees

If your trees have been devastated by a storm, the chances are they'll recover over time.

So before you give them the chop - follow our tree damage diagnosis, if the signs look good, go on to apply our tree repair tips…

Growing, growing or gone?

Consult a tree surgeon if you're in any doubt, but your tree will probably survive if:

• It looks fairly healthy and the tree damage isn't major
• The majority of the main branches are still there
• The main upward branch (leader branch) is still there
• At least half the leaves and branches are intact
• Wounds in broken branches or tears in the bark aren't serious; if they look large in relation to the limb, they may get infected
• Remaining branches look as if they will grow to form a full branch structure
• You want to keep it! There's no point treating a tree that's gotten in the way or become a nuisance

Tree repair tips

• Get a professional: Chainsaw work and climbing are jobs for the experts.
• Stay safe: avoid precarious hanging branches and downed power lines, phone lines, cable lines or fences that may have become electrically charged
• Remove small branches: prune back broken smaller branches to the root, leave larger ones to a tree surgeon
• Repair bark: use a knife to smooth ragged edges of torn bark but don't expose the fragile green bark underneath
• Don't over prune: they may look unbalanced or ugly right now, but trees heal and return to their original shape quickly
• Don't cut back the branches:  cutting back branches or “topping” just weakens the tree even more.

Print out and keep this information handy, or bookmark this page in favourites for when you need some useful guidance or tips.

Important Notice: Please Read

The purpose of this section of the website is to provide homeowners with only general guidance and useful tips on 18/08/06. It does not necessarily deal with every important topic or cover every aspect of the topics with which it deals.  It is not designed to provide professional advice and should not be relied on as such. 

You should always consult an appropriately qualified expert for specific advice before acting on any of the information contained in this section of the website.  You should never attempt to carry out any activity which may put you or others at risk or which may cause damage to your or anyone else's property.

Nothing on this website is intended to constitute a guarantee or form part of any agreement with Homeserve Plc or any of its group companies.  To the fullest extent permissible by law and except for any duty or liability to customers under the Financial Services Authority's regulatory system Homeserve Plc (a) disclaims all implied terms, conditions, representations and warranties with respect to the information contained in this section of the website and (b) excludes all liability or responsibility for such information or the use made of it insofar as it is reasonable for us to do so. 

Homeserve Plc has no responsibility for, or control over, the contents of any information appearing on any third party website (including the websites referred to on this website) and any reliance placed on such information is entirely at the users' own risk.