GARDEN RIDGE, Texas – A fallen pecan tree limb sent a local man to the hospital Sunday.
From his hospital bed, Juan Cantu remembered trying to cut the broken branch when the whole limb snapped and fell on him.
“It fell on my head. It pushed me back, and I broke my legs,” he said.
Cantu can only guess that the drought is what weakened the pecan tree.
Jess Divin, with Davey Tree Expert Company, said pecans have weaker wood, but all Texas trees are struggling.
“We’re seeing tree damage. So trees are starting to shed branches just because they are so dry and brittle that they can’t maintain the actual structure of the tree,” Divin said.
He urges homeowners to have an expert evaluate their trees at least once a year, especially after the extreme summers and winters the region has experienced.
“Drought can have long-lasting impacts on trees,” Divin said.
Instead of watering your grass, Divin recommends watering the decades-old or hundred-year-old trees in your yard. He said you don’t want to water at the base but at the canopy where the roots are located.
“We might be able to save a tree or help a tree that may be partially struggling right now to maintain its health so it doesn’t get too far down the road. Because once a tree gets too far down the road, it can actually expire,” Divin said.