GIVEN HER MASTER’S DEGREE in plant pathology, you may think Chelsi Abbott, a Technical Advisor at the Davey Institute, is mostly concerned with how trees die. In speaking with her, it quickly becomes clear that she’s happy talking about steps we can take to help trees live—and thrive. This can begin at the earliest start of spring, when it’s time to greet our awakening garden and landscape trees.
“Spring cleaning really applies outdoors as much as indoors,” Chelsi says. That means stepping outside “with a keen eye” to assess our woody plants and address routine maintenance, she explains. She recommends looking not just for the obvious—that is, winter-damaged branches—but also searching closely to determine trees’ and shrubs’ health. A good clue comes with leafing out. Chelsi says, “If something’s not…
