The Parke Company | The Parke Company

DIY Vs. Hiring an Arborist

September 30, 2026January 12, 2021 by The Parke Company

Tree with roots sticking our of the ground

Between taking up new hobbies, attempting to bake sourdough, and tackling home improvement tasks, people are taking on more DIY projects than ever.

While the gratification of doing it yourself may be wonderful, it can often come after a number of failed attempts. Even the most skilled jack of all trades has a pile of failed projects stacking up in their shed or utility room. When it comes to landscape services, not everyone wants to pay for things like lawn mowing or gardening, which can be simple tasks if you’re up for some manual labor. Even so, some tasks like tree trimming and tree removal, will give you a lot more trouble if you try to do it without help.

You may be weighing the cost of hiring certified arborist services, but you’ll quickly see how vital an arborist is to your tree and landscape health. Here are some pros and cons of hiring an arborist over a DIY project.

Pros and Cons of DIY Vs. Hiring an Arborist

Pros

If you have trees in your yard, you know that they can either be a great source of joy or a huge headache. Trees can be a lot of fun for kids who like to climb, hang hammocks, or build tree houses. Trees are an integral part of the ecosystem, providing vital oxygen, creating a natural barrier for privacy, and lending shade to your home to reduce electric bills during the warmer months.

At the same time, for homeowners, unhealthy trees can also bring a lot of anxiety.

A dead or dying tree can block your view of the street and drop pesky leaves on your lawn. What’s more, a damaged tree is at risk for falling and causing serious damage to your home or family.

While you may be able to estimate roughly the needs of the trees on your property, the untrained eye is not skilled enough to pre-empt disaster. A certified arborist, like the professionals at The Parke Company, are trained to notice the signs of a tree near the end of its life.

One benefit of hiring an arborist is avoiding the danger of leaving a damaged tree untreated and even if you do notice the damage in time, only a trained arborist has the skills and equipment to safely treat or remove a damaged tree without causing any more damage.

While the initial cost of hiring an arborist may seem higher, many forget to calculate the cost of heavy equipment necessary to complete the DIY projects. This is machinery you are unlikely to use for anything else around the house. Ultimately, the money you tried to save by doing the project yourself will be spent on tools and equipment that goes to rust in your garage after your project is finished.

Beyond that, avoiding the cost of a fallen tree from a project gone awry should always be prioritized– for your wallet and for safety.

Cons

The cons of hiring an arborist are similar to the drawbacks of hiring any services you may technically be able to accomplish on your own.

Just like you may be able to watch a YouTube tutorial to repair your car, it is possible, but potentially dangerous to complete tree maintenance on your own. Hiring an arborist may be an inconvenience by taking up space in your yard, but the overall benefits of hiring a professional are well worth the temporary mess.

Trust The Parke Company Difference!

Not all landscaping companies are made alike. When it comes to bigger projects like tree removal, landscape installation, and commercial services, there is only one name to trust in the Nashville area: The Parke Company.

Our time-honored methods and history of happy customers speak for themselves– talk with one of our experienced professionals today at (615) 350-6033 or contact us online to see how the Parke Company can bring your design dreams to life!

Fertilizing in Winter to See More Green in Spring

September 30, 2026December 7, 2020 by The Parke Company

In Nashville, most lawns are planted with cool-growth grass like bluegrass and tall fescue. These grasses grow longer into the fall and actually don’t go dormant until after the first hard freeze. Because of this “cool-weather” growth, a Nashville lawn can benefit from a late fall or early winter application of fertilizer.

The Parke Company, a full-service Nashville landscaping service and tree service, often recommends a late season application of fertilizer to feed the grass for the limited time it will continue to grow. Just as importantly, the fertilizer allows the grass to store nutrients in the roots, allowing the grass to come up green and lush in spring.

Winter, even our comparatively mild winters, can be hard on a lawn. Because the grass turns brown, many people seem to forget that the lawn still needs care, mostly protective care. A late fertilizer application, and even a late lawn aeration can go a long way in making your spring lawn strong and healthy, but it has to survive to spring first.

Winter Lawn Care Tips

Lawn problems are not limited to those months when the temperatures go up and the sun shines all day. Winter can bring problems that can actually kill grass, trees, shrubs, and flowering plants. To keep that risk to a minimum, follow these simple tips:

Keep your lawn clean. Dormant grass can be crushed. Grass can be “broken” by foot traffic or by something as light as a pile of leaves that sits on the grass in the same place for months. Winter can litter your lawn, creating those “light weight” dangers. Snow and winter rains will strip the last of any leaves left, snap twigs and weaker limbs, and scatter debris from the neighborhood onto your lawn. Periodically clean up the litter and do a leaf pickup. Your leaf rake is probably your best tool. It’s time consuming but it gets the job done without using a heavy machine and it gets you some outdoor exercise.
Keep your walkways clear. One way to minimize foot traffic on your lawn is to ensure your sidewalks and driveway are kept cleared of ice and snow. If you use a deicer to clear your walkways, make sure you use a plant safe formulation. Sodium chloride, AKA rock salt, will not only corrode your sidewalk, but if it gets on anything living like grass or shrubs, it may kill it.
Cover your fragile shrubs. If you have rose bushes or other more fragile plants, cover them with burlap. Nashville gets a little snow, but we get more than our fair share of sleet. A good sleet storm – and it only takes one – can devastate a rose garden.

Of course, if you don’t have the time to maintain your lawn in the winter, you can always call the Parke Company for assistance. Preventing damage in winter makes taking care of your lawn in the spring significantly easier. If we can help you with that, we would be delighted to assist.

After the Storm – Correcting Tree Damage

September 30, 2026December 7, 2020 by The Parke Company

Strong winter winds and trees are not compatible. Toss in the weight of ice and snow and trees have to struggle to remain intact and in place. Too often the overwhelming forces of nature will damage your trees, possibly seriously, and when that happens, the crew from Nashville’s leading tree service fires up the equipment and responds.

Emergency tree service focuses first on correcting dangerous conditions. The Parke Company will remove trees leaning on structures, clear and remove trees and limbs from driveways, and prune or remove trees that might represent a risk of personal injury.

Our objective is to address the emergency conditions quickly. Storms usually mean that everybody needs help all at the same time. Our first priority is our clients, but we have the tree specialists, wood chippers, and other equipment to assist others as well.

How to Clean Up Tree Damage from a Storm

Inspecting for Hidden Problems

Once the immediate problems are resolved, we recommend a survey of the rest of the trees by one of our arborists. Each tree should be inspected for root health, cracks, crown damage, and signs of disease.

Treatment recommendations on storm damaged trees will depend on the type of damage, tree health, species of tree, and potential for a recurrence of failure. Where tree trimming is required to restructure the crown, the tree will frequently require a series of pruning sessions over a number of years to bring it back to a desirable shape and strong structure.

Trees less than 20 feet high that are “leaning” can often be corrected by using cables, guys, and bracing to straighten and strengthen the plant. Typically the braces and guys are removed after a single growing season. Larger trees in the leaning category have to be carefully evaluated because they represent a likely risk for future falling.

The one positive that winter provides is that it makes it easier to evaluate a tree’s structure. With no leaves to contend with, an inspection for cracked branches, splits in stems, and shifting of root plate are far easier to do. However, the inspections should not end just because the storm is over.

Storms cause stress to trees, often creating cracks and damaging bark that can be missed in an inspection. When the thaw comes and growing season begins, those cracks can be open doors for insect infestations. An inspection at the start of spring will determine if the tree needs to be treated.

Mulching, fertilizer, and adequate irrigation will also assist a tree in recovering from a strong storm. Trees are a treasure. They are worth the effort to keep them alive and well.

Taking Advantage of Storm Damage

One silver lining can be had from a winter storm that damages your trees.

After the inspection, a general cleanup is usually performed, removing fallen branches and debris that is littering the lawn. If you like, and if the trees are appropriate, we can provide you with wood chip mulch using the tree parts we have cleaned up. If tree removal was part of the process, we can provide split firewood as well.

Trees and Safety – When Is it Time to Say Goodbye?

September 30, 2026December 4, 2020 by The Parke Company

Trees are every property owner’s biggest dream and worst nightmare. Trees in your landscape can be host to your child’s tree house and some of their best memories, or they can be host to pests and critters that vandalize your yard.

However, some trees can be a tremendous hazard if they fall, causing significant damage to property or people nearby. This is precisely why it is crucial to make tree trimming and other tree services a priority of your landscaping services. Let’s discuss what you should look for so you know when it’s time to say goodbye to a tree on your property.

When to Remove a Tree

Signs of Damage

When asking yourself whether tree removal is necessary, it is first necessary to check for signs of damage. If your trees have brittle bark, weak branches, or leaves dropping out of season, these are clear signs that your tree at least needs a little TLC.

Sometimes, it can be difficult to determine just how far your tree maintenance must go. In some cases, crown thinning or other methods of trimming are all that’s necessary to restore your trees to their former glory. This is not a decision to make lightly, however.

While your branches may look safe to you, an experienced arborist is much better equipped to recognize damage that is too far gone and help you make prudent decisions. Landscaping professionals like those at The Parke Company are prepared to help you rid your yard of risks and keep your trees safe from falling branches.

Critters and Pests

Down trees are not the only threat to your property’s safety. Critters and pests can also present a significant risk. At their best, squirrels, racoons, and owls occasionally run or fly across your lawn, reminding us we share their ecosystem. However, occasionally trees overrun with pests can present a serious health and safety risk. Some creatures that eat away at your home and build nests of their own can impact the safety of your home’s structural integrity.

Contact The Parke Company Today!

Nobody wants to get rid of a tree that doesn’t need it, but knowing just when to cut down a tree is a tricky task best left to the experts.

When it comes to larger tasks like tree trimming for your home or municipal area, it is unlikely that you can complete the job on your own. We urge you never to work with a landscaping business who doesn’t have arborists on staff. These are trained professionals who actually know how to properly care for trees and landscaping.

Hiring the experienced professionals at The Parke Company for landscape services is the first step to ensuring you receive the kind of landscaping and lawn services necessary to preserve the assets on your property. From lawn mowing to removal of trees, the landscaping professionals at The Parke Company have the experience and the skills to meet the unique needs of your property and bring your design dreams to life.

Give us a call (615-350-6033) or contact us online today to see how The Parke Company difference can work for you.

Outdoor Holiday Decorating Ideas

September 30, 2026December 4, 2020 by The Parke Company

For the outdoor enthusiast, winter can be a disheartening time. Most often, gardeners and green thumbs alike trade their gardening gloves for mittens and their trowels for snow shovels.

Whether your winters are mild and green or covered in snow, you still have options for winter landscaping. Today on the blog we’ve cracked the code on landscaping in the cooler months. Here is everything you need to know about outdoor holiday decorating ideas.

How to Decorate for the Holidays

Winter Soft Scapes

If you live in an area like Nashville, winters can be magical. The occasional light snow and mild temperatures are enough to fill even the biggest grinch with Christmas cheer and nostalgia. All of that holiday cheer can even extend to your landscaping. There are plenty of plants hardy enough to withstand the winter if they are tended to the right way. After leaf collection in the fall, you can actually start thinking about planting your shrubs rather than shrub removal.

Evergreens and other resilient plants fare quite well in the colder months and can help bring a little bit of life back into your landscape design. Talk with your arborist about the best options for incorporating new winter plants for holiday landscaping services.

Winter Hardscapes

Especially in the age of COVID, even our small gatherings are being forced outdoors. While many people are taking on new home improvement projects, it is a great time to start thinking about hardscape installations for your holiday landscape design.

Now is the perfect time to contract services for paver or walkway installations. While candlelit dinner parties in your dining room are out of the question for the foreseeable future, backyard bonfires and patio dining are great ways to stay connected with friends and family while keeping everyone safe.

Regardless of the season, a bonfire pit is a great investment that can be installed easily with little time and disruption to your schedule. In the winter months, a roaring fire can help make outdoor gatherings possible, while livening up your summer gatherings with smores and campfire stories.

If you’ve ever dreamt of Christmas songs by the fire, but don’t have the means to install an expensive fireplace, installing a firepit and backyard patio is the perfect choice for holiday landscape design.

Contact The Parke Company Today!

Getting your landscape ready for the holidays is going to take some work. When it comes to larger tasks, like tree trimming or hardscape installation for your home or municipal area, it is unlikely that you can complete the job on your own. Hiring the experienced professionals at The Parke Company for landscape services is the first step to ensuring you receive the kind of landscaping and lawn services necessary to preserve the assets on your property and bring holiday cheer.

From bringing holiday cheer to your lawn to lawn mowing to tree removal, the landscaping professionals at The Parke Company have the experience and the skills to meet the unique needs of your property and bring your design dreams to life. Give us a call (615-350-6033) or contact us online today to see how The Parke Company difference can work for you.