What Is A Growth Regulator
Tree growth regulators can be a very useful tool for promoting tree health, especially for the trees in Omaha. Here, they face varied and significant challenges as they cohabitate with their human neighbors. For instance, people can plant them too deep, bury them over time in dirt and/or mulch, or plant them too close to power lines and other man-made structures, among other issues. In these cases, growth regulators provide a great way to supplement and improve tree health by redirecting the energy of the trees.
In general, trees have only so much energy to perform five different functions:
- Growth
- Energy storage
- Sealing off damaged tissue
- Defense
- Reproduction
However, in an urban setting, growth can often be the least desirable of these functions, particularly when trying to maintain a tree’s vigor as it ages. By contrast, a growth regulator reduces the energy a mature tree dedicates to shoot and canopy growth. Therefore, the tree can invest this energy into the other functions that contribute to its overall health and vigor.
Specifically, growth regulator treatments use hormones that redirect where the tree puts its energy. Over time, during the three years that the treatment lasts, “cell division still occurs, but the new cells do not elongate”[i], which reduces growth by one third to one half. As a result, this redirection of energy allows the tree to focus on sealing off damaged tissue, defense, or other more pressing functions.
[i] https://www.extension.purdue.edu/extmedia/fnr/fnr-252-w.pdf
Why Use A Tree Growth Regulator On Your Trees
Typically, we use growth regulators in two main scenarios:
- First,we apply it to slow the growth of a tree that stands too close to a house, power lines, driveway, or similar structures. The tree will still grow- but less vigorously- which reduces the need for frequent trimming.
- Second,we use it to redirect energy toward the roots or defense systems, helping a struggling tree that faces nutrient deficiency, drought, stress, or disease infection.
Why use a growth regulator on your trees?
To maximize effectiveness, we apply the growth regulator through deep root soil injection. Typically, the treatment lasts approximately three years. We do not recommend it for Japanese maple, redbud, or dogwood species, however.
In conclusion, if you think a growth regulator could benefit the health of your trees, Arbor Aesthetics will be happy to send out a certified arborist to evaluate whether this treatment will help support the long-term health of your trees.
Keyword Phrase: Growth Regulator, Tree Health
