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Two Years In and the New Trees Still Look Small. Watering Is Often Why.
Direct Answer: A young tree that has not grown in two years is usually underwatered at depth, not diseased. In clay soil, water deeply and less often, and move emitters outward as the canopy widens. The call comes in a few different ways, but it is always the same story. Three trees went in two […]
Your Tree Looks Healthy From the Driveway. The Trunk May Say Otherwise.
Direct Answer: Internal decay is found by sounding the trunk with a mallet and, where needed, taking a resistograph reading that measures how much sound wood remains. A green canopy cannot tell you either one. Most homeowners judge a tree by its leaves. That is a reasonable instinct, and it does rule some things in. […]
SB 342 Shifts What You Can Claw Back if a Contractor’s License Lapses
Direct Answer: Starting January 1, 2027, SB 342 lets a contractor who was licensed when the contract was signed keep payment for work done while licensed, and disgorge only pay for unlicensed work. Most homeowners in Willow Glen or Almaden Valley never think about a contractor’s license after the first phone call. It comes up […]
The Tree Is Touching the Line to Your House. Whose Job Is That in San Jose?
Direct Answer: The thin line running from the pole to your house is the service drop, and clearing vegetation around it falls to the property owner. The heavier lines along the street are PG&E’s to clear. You walk out to the driveway, look up, and there it is. A branch resting right on the wire […]
Why Liquidambars Drop Limbs in Late Summer Around San Jose
Direct Answer: Liquidambars shed limbs in late summer because long horizontal branches carry heavy end weight on weak unions while the tree is moisture stressed. It is common species behavior, not proof the tree is dying. It is a hot Saturday in late August. No wind, no storm, nothing unusual. Then a limb the size […]
Your Gardener Sheared Your Trees Into Shrubs. Can They Come Back?
Direct Answer: Often yes. Most sheared or topped trees can be guided back toward a natural form through restoration pruning, done in stages over three to five years. Full original shape is not always possible. You walked out back this weekend and something finally clicked. The trees do not look like trees anymore. They look […]
Poison Oak Keeps Coming Back Every Year. The Root System Is Why.
Direct Answer: Poison oak returns because most of the plant is an underground rhizome network. Cutting the stems removes the smallest part, and the roots push new shoots up in the same spot. You cleared that back corner in spring. Long sleeves, gloves, a tarp, the whole afternoon. And by the next year there are […]
Your Permit Requires a Project Arborist. What Construction Monitoring Involves
Direct Answer: A project arborist writes the tree protection plan, inspects the fencing before your permit is released, visits the site during root sensitive work, and files the monitoring reports your city requires before final inspection. You waited months for plans to clear. Then you read the conditions of approval and find a line you […]
State Backed Low Interest Loans Are Coming for Defensible Space Work
Direct Answer: SB 894 created the California Wildfire Resilience Loan Program, a low interest loan fund for home hardening and defensible space work. The statute takes effect January 1, 2027, but launch depends on future state budgets. If you own a home in the Almaden Valley foothills or up off Highway 9 in Saratoga, you […]
Do You Need to Be Home When an Arborist Comes to Look at Your Trees?
Direct Answer: Often no. If the tree faces the street and can be reached from the curb, an arborist can assess it without you. Locked gates, dogs, or backyard trees usually mean someone should be home. The office offers you a window and it lands at 1 p.m. on a Tuesday. You want the tree […]
