Remember to band your trees this fall
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 23/09/2019 (2373 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
What started as a summer job for Chris Schmidt has turned into a thriving business that is now the largest tree-banding company in Winnipeg.
“Growing up I saw my Dad always band the trees at our house,” Schmidt says. “I started my first company at the age of 10, Schmidt Lawn Care and in the fall my Dad suggested I offer a tree-banding service to my lawn-care customers. This continued until I was 17, at which point I decided to offer my tree-banding service to everyone.”
As the City of Winnipeg continues to lose more trees due to disease, it has become vitally important for residents to band trees.
“Tree banding is a cost-effective way to help protect your trees from cankerworms,” Schmidt says. “Cankerworms feast on elm, ash, maple, linden, oak, and ornamental trees. They can leave a tree completely stripped of leaves. This weakens the tree and makes them more susceptible to other insect attacks and diseases, such as Dutch elm disease.
“Repeated defoliation year after year can lead to limb dieback and kill a tree.”
To band a tree you need to use foil-facing insulation; place the foil on the tree, facing the outside, approximately 1.5 metres from the ground; pull it tightly around and secure the band with tape; fill in cracks and crevices with extra insulation; and spread a layer of tree tanglefoot on the band. Bands should remain on trees from September to May long weekend.
“But understand, if the canopies of your trees overlap with your neighbors and they aren’t banding, there is a chance the cankerworms could walk over,” Schmidt says. “It is very important to encourage your neighbours to band their trees.”
For more information on tree banding visit winnipeg.ca (search tree banding), Schmidt Tree Banding at schmidttreebanding.ca, or email orders@schmidttreebanding.ca
Carolyne Braid is a community correspondent for Crescentwood. You can reach her at carolyne.braid@gmail.com