By Catherine Powell
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| Image courtesy wikimedia |
Fortunately for all us northern
Floridians, last year’s hurricane season went by without a hitch. That’s good, because the two years previous
gave the area a brutal one two punch.
Aside from tearing shingles of many homes, hurricanes Matthew and Irma
caused a great deal of flood damage and lots of downed trees. While shoring up your home against rain and
flood is something that I can’t really help you with (other than providing
insurance coverage), when it comes to keeping you from having any undue anxiety
over your trees, I can give you some advice.
Trees can be a blessing or a curse. When the dog days of summer hammer us with
months of 90+ degree temperatures, shade trees can help us keep our cool. They can also save you money by lowering your
electric bill, since a shaded house doesn’t require nearly as much power to
cool as one that has to take everything the Florida Sun can throw at it. The bad news is when the high winds
associated with squalls and hurricanes make the rain blow sideways, sometimes
the strain is too much for trees to take and they come crashing down. If they hit your home or your vehicle, the damage
can be extreme, especially if the tree falls in the middle of a storm which can
cause extensive water damage after the fact.
