What should you do with your trees in October in Carson City and Reno?

Carson City sits near 4,700 feet, Reno near 4,500 and Virginia City above 6,000, so the calendar means different things at different addresses. This is a checklist for the weeks before the ground freezes and the first real storm.

Why does October matter more than other months?

It is the last stretch of easy access. The ground is workable, the leaves are coming down so the structure of each tree shows, and the weather has not yet turned. Once snow falls, everything you meant to deal with gets harder, and a limb that was already weak is asked to carry a load.

Elevation shifts the whole season. NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals record about 14.0 inches of snow a year at the Carson City station, 20.9 inches at the Reno airport and 46.4 inches at Virginia City, at about 6,340 feet. A tree in Virginia City or Kingsbury gets winter earlier and keeps it longer than one in the Carson Valley.

Should you still water trees in October?

Yes, until the soil freezes. Valley trees here live on irrigation, since the normals put yearly precipitation at 9.34 inches in Carson City and 7.35 at the Reno airport. Letting a mature tree go into winter dry is a common way to start a decline that shows up the next summer.

University of Nevada, Reno Extension recommends deep watering of landscape trees out to the edge of the canopy. Do not shut the system off on a calendar date. Turn it off when freezing weather arrives, and pick up the winter schedule in our post on winter watering.

What should you look for when you walk the yard?

Look up from the ground. You are checking for things that would worry you in a storm, not diagnosing anything.

Do not climb, use a ladder or cut anything overhead to get a closer look. A bowed or hanging limb can hold a lot of stored energy.

• Dead branches, especially in the upper crown
• Limbs hanging in the tree or resting on another branch
• Cracks or splits where a trunk forks into two or more stems
• Mushrooms or fungus at the base of the trunk
• A lean that is new, or soil heaving on one side
• Branches over the roof, the driveway or a power line

How do you reduce fire fuel in the fall?

Needles and leaves pile up through the fall, and the Living With Fire guide from Extension asks for the first 5 feet around a building, Zone 0, to be free of dead leaves and needles. Clear the gutters, the roof valleys and the space under decks. In pine areas the guide also advises raking needles out of Zone 1 once in the spring, since they build up over fall and winter.

If you have a woodpile against the house, October is when it tends to grow. Move it out of the first 5 feet. Our post on defensible space before winter covers the other zones.

What can be pruned now, and what should wait?

Dead, broken or hazardous branches can come out at any time of year. For everything else the usual advice is to wait for dormancy: late winter for most deciduous trees and early spring or summer for most conifers. That is the same timing Battle Born gives on its own pruning FAQ and the International Society of Arboriculture gives for homeowners.

The species-by-species detail is in what can and cannot be pruned in fall. If something has you worried, a certified arborist can look at it before the snow. Battle Born Tree Service has two ISA Certified Arborists on staff, including ISA Certified Arborist WE-11728A, and an arborist assesses every job before work begins. Call 775.232.8243 for a free estimate.

What if a storm comes before you are ready?

Keep people away from the tree. If anyone is hurt, call 911. If a line is involved, stay away and call NV Energy. Then call our 24-hour line at 775.232.8243. The steps are in what to do first after storm damage.