CARING FOR TREES

Our Tree Guardians are the secret behind our trees high survival rate.

It is vital that a newly planted street tree is given adequate attention over the first three years following planting. Watering starts in March each year.

Watering tips - for best practice

  • Please start watering your trees in the last week of March or at the first sign of new green growth. You can normally stop watering in October unless it’s particularly dry and hot. 

  • Follow the '20 litres in one visit' routine (measure don’t guess!) to encourage vertical root growth from the start.

  • Please give a single watering of 20 litres as soon as the tree is planted to replace any water lost in transit.

  • Always water using the irrigation pipes provided, as well as watering the soil around the top of the root ball.  Do not water the base or the trunk of the tree

  • Remove wild vegetation that will compete for available water (additional planting around the tree should be avoided during the first two years)

  • Involve neighbours and set up watering groups – especially when there is more than one tree to care for, but even when there is just one. Flyers are available.

  • If possible, mulch to retain moisture – bark clippings, leaf mould or well-rotted horse manure (fresh manure will damage the tree).  Lay in a doughnut formation, making sure that the mulch does not lie against the base of the tree (where it might cause collar rot).

  • If your tree is an evergreen, then you must continue to water it with 20L once a month from November - February, discontinuing if there is a hard frost, and ensuring that you never: use hot water; use water containing any bleach; place any de-icing salts around the base of the tree.

  • Expect email messages from us or from your street reps. If none appear, check spam folders and/or get in touch.

More than just water

Please always report damage to bark, broken branches, ineffective stakes, guards and straps

  • Also report branches that need pruning, or any overhanging the road at risk from vehicles!

  • Combine watering with feed if the tree isn’t thriving

  • Report good news or problems to us: maintenance@streettreesforliving.org

Become a
tree guardian!

‘If you plant trees from good stock, at the right time, and provide enough water, you’d lose almost none prematurely. But get that wrong, and more than half can die.’

— Russell Miller, London-based arboricultural consultant (Guardian 1st August 2019)