Tree Care
Caring for Jersey City’s Trees
Caring for Jersey City trees has become an urgent matter. For years, Jersey City has been losing many more trees than the City has been planting, causing a major deficit in trees for the municipality. Currently, the City has a 17 percent tree canopy which is quite low for a City of our size. Aging urban canopy, neglect during previous administrations, disease, and pest outbreaks, and damage from major storms have been some of the reasons why our City trees are literally dying. Therefore, in an effort to reduce the number of trees that are dying it is important that as residents we learn best practices for caring for our local trees to be able to improve our tree canopy for generations to come.
According to the Arbor Day Foundation, you can help keep the City’s local trees in good condition by:
Watering: Tree watering is a key part of tree care and it is difficult to recommend an exact amount due to the varieties of climates. But a few guidelines will help you to water your trees properly.
Pruning: This depends to a large extent on why you prune. Light pruning and the removal of dead wood can be done anytime. Otherwise, here are some guidelines, but recognizing that individual species may differ is important to remember.
Mulching: A newly planted tree’s best friend is mulch. It is very important to remember to mulch your tree after you have planted it.
Shovel
The shovel is the mainstay and workhorse of the garden shed.
Trowell/Transplanter
This is for precision digging in small spaces. The trowel has a narrow blade that is perfect for installing bedding plants. The transplanter has an even narrower blade.
Cultivator
Is designed to scratch the soil either prior to planting or around the plants while growing. They are available either with long handles or as hand tools.
Rake
Takes the concept of the human hand and finger dexterity to a bigger scale. They come in all sizes and styles.
Hoe
Another simple and ancient tool, the hoe is designed for weeding and light groundbreaking. There are many different head sizes and shapes.
Wheelbarrow
A wheelbarrow is a small hand-propelled vehicle, usually with just one wheel, designed to be pushed and guided by a single person using two handles at the rear, or by a sail to push the ancient wheelbarrow by the wind.
Pruner
Pruning shears also called hand pruners, or secateurs, are a type of scissors for use on plants. They are strong enough to prune hard branches of trees and shrubs, sometimes up to two centimeters thick.