American Tree and Forestry Care

11/11/2025

Fooling around because the shadow looked funny to me

11/07/2025

I climbed up a spruce tree to remove a mostly dead codominant leader. I didn't take the critical before picture but I smiled like it was a middle school photo album picture so that makes up for it.
It was cool, in my opinion the most valuable pruning that can be done is when you have a dying lead with about 50 percent dead material. The living portions don't allow the tree to fully compartmentalize the dying portion, so removing it allows the tree to actually move on instead of letting a leader continue to decline for 5-10 more years, allowing potential decay to spread into the trunk.

10/31/2025

What a challenging tree. I'll get better pictures but it was about 90 in dbh. Biggest, most annoying trunk i have torn apart maybe ever.
David Thompson/Matt Dk

08/27/2025

I don't take pictures when the funny stuff is happening and I miss the action.
True story, I was cutting a hollow 36 in cottonwood log and it settled and I pinched the saw. I turned around to as David to cut me out real quick and this big ass snake 🐍 had pulled his head thru the cut and was right on the front handle.
I jumped away in a manly way that wasn't girly at all. Definitely yelled in a manly way and didn't scream at all like a little girl. If David says anything else don't believe him.
So when I returned after not running away but calmly walking to get a water I realized I had pretty well cut him in half and that was his final dealio. Last look in the eye. Better luck next time snakey snake.
This was not purposeful! Just was inside the log I was cutting. I probably wouldn't have noticed if I hadn't got pinched.
Matt

08/06/2025

Quick post about Chlorosis!
Chlorosis is evident clearly in maple trees by early yellowing in the margins of the leaf(space between the veins). The veins are still green ( I should have photographed that part).
The tree pictured does not have enough access to iron and manganese. After the tree gets to appx 6-10 inches DBH, adding iron and manganese to the soil is an inadequate solution. ALSO, OFTEN there is iron and manganese in the soil but it can't be absorbed due to the pH of the soil. Soooo.... You have to do trunk injections.
No problem! I have two trunk injection systems available and plenty of MN jet. These leaves will darken in about 3 weeks, indicating that chlorophyll production has resumed and decline will be reversed.
The pictured trunk injection system is the arborjet f18 pro. I have 24 viper tip needles and can pressurize a 48in DBH tree with 2 liters of concentrated formulation at a time. I guess I didn't capture the photo of the system that well.
I'm an Arborist, not a photographer....
Call 307-200-9676
Initial Plant health consultation is $40.
I'll post this maple again in 3 weeks so you can see the stunning transformation.

08/06/2025

Different PPE for different tasks!

07/18/2025

I have experienced a ton of insurance companies telling people to perform incorrect pruning or risk being dropped by their policy.
It's important to get a certified Arborist to help protect your trees for generations to come.
Insurance companies are not excellent resources for how to prune trees.

Across neighborhoods in the U.S., something strange is happening. Homeowners are receiving notices from their insurance companies warning them, “Prune back those limbs overhanging your home or lose your coverage.” The offending branches? Those on trees that overhang roofs – even healthy, structurally sound trees and branches.

What might seem like a prudent safety policy is, in practice, triggering a wave of hasty removals, reckless pruning and potential long-term risk. The irony is thick; in trying to prevent damage, insurers often are creating the very conditions that make catastrophic failures more likely.

Full Story - https://hubs.li/Q03xKG1W0

06/13/2025

Working around these lil dudes is challenging. Gotta be careful up there when climbing.