By Steve Kemme
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Jamie Charles trims a wind-damaged oak tree Tuesday near the Greenhills swimming pool. (Craig Ruttle photo) | ZOOM |

It's been a tough year for Tristate trees.

They've taken a beating from the many violent storms that have swept through the area. Trees and tree limbs have fallen so fast and so often that tree removal businesses can't keep up.

"It's just been crazy," said Peggy Ray, office manager for Bartlett Tree Experts in Sharonville. "We're still about three weeks behind in our storm damage work."

A 20-year-old red maple tree that stood 50 feet high was blown over in an April storm in Joe Novosat's front yard on Mary Beth Drive in West Chester Township. Two of his neighbors also have had trees destroyed or damaged this year.

"The other day we had a storm and it seemed the trees were all blowing toward the house," said Novosat, 56. "In all the years I've been here, there's no question about it, we've seen more trees fall this year."

Scottie Whitson, owner of Scottie's Tree Service in Kenwood, said he hasn't seen this much tree damage since the severe ice storms in 1977 and 1978.

"We've had one heck of a lot of trees die here in Cincinnati," he said. "You just see dead trees everywhere.''

TREE CARE TIPS

Water newly planted trees and trees in drought conditions. Established trees don't need to be watered when the rainfall is normal. Spread mulch around trees. Mulch stifles weeds and conserves moisture. Prune carefully. Removing trees' diseased or dead branches will improve the trees' overall health. It's a job best left to arborists. Never top a tree. It damages the branch structure, allows entry points for decay and doesn't slow a tree's growth. Source: Tree Care Industry Association

High winds aren't the only reason for the heavy tree damage. The trend in recent years of heavy rains in April and May followed by two or three months of hot, dry weather has weakened many trees, tree experts say.

Heavy spring rains can saturate the ground and cause tree roots to rot from a lack of oxygen, said Tim Back, owner of Back Tree Service in West Chester Township.

"Our trees have declined in recent years because it's too wet too long and too dry too long," Back said. "They become more brittle."

In that fragile state, the trees are especially vulnerable to strong winds. Few areas in the Tristate have avoided an unusual amount of tree damage this year.

"We've been having little freak storms in different parts of town every other day for the past two months," Whitson said. "One time, it'll hit Amberley Village and Blue Ash. The next time, it will be Addyston and Evanston. Then it will be Fairfield and Hamilton."

This year's storms have taken their toll on the public parks as well as homeowners' yards.

Work crews in Butler County's parks have had to remove more toppled trees and fallen limbs than usual, said Mike Muska, director of MetroParks of Butler County.

"They've created a lot of problems on our walking trails," he said.

The storms also cost Butler County parks a treasured tree. More than 150 years old, it was struck in May by lightning in Governor Bebb Preserve in Morgan Township.

"We had to take it down because it posed a safety threat," Muska said. "These storms have been wreaking havoc everywhere."

Older trees are less able than younger trees to withstand the cycle of heavy rains, droughts and high winds, Whitson said.

"In droughts, any trees around 30 or 40 years old are in trouble," he said. "They get into a stress mode if people don't water them like they should. The younger trees survive better.

"In some ways, trees are just like humans," Whitson added. "They breathe, they eat, they drink, they live and they die."

Enquirer reporter Jennifer Edwards contributed. E-mail skemme@enquirer.com