An Expert Look at a Tree You're Worried About
Most people do not think about a tree until something looks wrong: a limb dies back, the leaves thin out, or the trunk starts to lean after a storm. The question is usually the same. Is this tree okay, or is it a problem waiting to happen?
A tree health assessment answers it. A member of the Giraffe Tree Service team looks over the tree and its surroundings, explains what they see and talks you through your options. Before recommending any service, we assess each tree's structure, canopy, root zone and overall vitality, so the advice fits the tree in front of us.
The visit is also a good fit if you are buying a property with mature trees, planning work near them, or simply want a professional opinion before deciding to remove a tree you love.
Signs Your Tree Needs a Health Assessment
Trees often show stress before they fail, but the signs are easy to miss or explain away. Consider calling if you notice any of these:
- Dead or dying branches, especially high in the crown
- Thinning leaves, or leaves that are small, drop or change color much earlier than on nearby trees
- Mushrooms or other fungus growing on the trunk or at the base
- Cracks, splits or hollow areas in the trunk or major limbs
- A new lean, or soil that has lifted or cracked around the base
- Peeling or missing bark, or sap oozing from the trunk
- Roots that have been cut or damaged, or soil piled up or packed down around the tree
One sign by itself is not always serious, and a tree can have a dead branch and be otherwise healthy. Several signs together, or any sign on a tree near your house, driveway or play area, are worth having someone look at.
What We Check During a Tree Health Assessment
We look at four things, working from the ground up.
Structure
We check the trunk and main branches for cracks, cavities, weak attachments and lean. Where two trunks grow from the same point, the union can be a weak spot.
Canopy
The crown shows how the tree is doing. We look for thinning, dieback, dead wood and leaves that are unusually small or discolored.
Root zone
Roots hold the tree up and take in water and nutrients, so a lot rides on this area. We look at the base for lifted soil, damaged or girdling roots, fungus and signs of compaction or disturbance.
Vitality
Vitality is how well the tree can respond to stress. Putting the other three together, we judge whether the tree has the energy to recover with some help or whether decline is further along.
Some problems start inside a tree and are hard to see from outside. Where something looks concerning, we will tell you what we can and cannot tell from a visual check.
What Happens After the Assessment
We explain what we found in plain language and lay out your options. Depending on the tree, that might be pruning or crown reduction, cabling and bracing, deep root fertilization, lightning protection or removal. Each recommendation comes with the reason behind it.
If a tree has a deeper or ongoing problem, or you have several trees that need attention, longer-term care may be the better next step. Our tree risk and health management page explains how we handle that longer-term work.
If removal turns out to be the right call, we handle it ourselves, using cranes and modern rigging equipment for complex removals, and we can grind the stump so the area is ready for new planting. Estimates are free, with no hidden fees, and the decision stays with you.
Assess First, Remove Last
Removing a tree is permanent, so it should be the last option rather than the first. That is why we start with an assessment before recommending any service. A tree with some dead wood, a weak limb or a stressed root zone can often be helped with pruning, support or better care, and keeping a healthy mature tree is usually better for a property than replacing it.
Sometimes the assessment points the other way. A tree with serious structural damage, or one standing where its failure could hurt someone, may be better removed, and we will say so plainly.
Giraffe Tree Service is a locally owned Little Rock business, founded in 1996 and led by President Dean Goodson. Our crews are experienced, and we use modern equipment. If a tree has you concerned, contact us to arrange a visit.
Tree Health Assessment FAQs
Is a tree health assessment the same as a tree risk assessment?
They overlap, but the focus differs. A health assessment looks at how the tree is doing and what it needs. Risk management looks at how likely a tree is to fail and what it could hit. What we find in the first often shapes the second.
Can you tell a tree is dying just by looking at it?
Often you can spot clear signs, such as widespread dieback, a hollow trunk or fungus at the base. Some problems are hidden inside the trunk or below ground, though, so a visual check has limits. We will tell you what we can see, what we cannot and when it makes sense to keep watching the tree.
Does a tree with a dead branch need to be removed?
Not usually. One dead limb is often a pruning job rather than a removal. The real question is what caused the dieback and whether the rest of the tree is sound. That is what an assessment sorts out, by looking at the trunk, canopy and roots together before anyone recommends a cut.
Should I be there during the visit?
It helps if you are. You know the property and the tree's history, such as when it began to look different, whether the ground was disturbed nearby and what you plan to build or plant. Walking the tree with us lets you ask questions as they come up.
Do you assess trees on commercial or municipal properties?
Yes. Giraffe Tree Service works with residential, commercial and municipal clients, and with developers and property managers. A property with many mature trees can be looked at tree by tree, so the ones that need attention are clearly identified.
