Street Trees Need Water in Summer Heat

Georgetown residents are asked to consider their street trees during . The National Weather Service issued a Heat Advisory for Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. because the heat index is expected to reach 105 degrees and the temperature around 100 degrees.

Thanks to a contract between Trees for Georgetown and Casey's Trees, the non-profit assists in watering recently planted trees  two or three times over the course of the summer. But trees need more water than that, so residents are asked to help out during hot weather.

Trees planted within the last three to four years are more vulnerable.

"I have noticed that some of the newly planted trees seem not to have been watered since planting. Please be advised that it is incumbent on homeowners to water the trees in front of/ on the side of their houses, just as we are obliged to shovel our sidewalks in the winter" wrote Betsy Emes of Trees for Georgetown on the neighborhood listserv.

Check out these tree watering tips from the District Department of Transportation’s Urban Forestry Administration:

• "Most trees need about 5 gallons of water per week to grow and function normally."
• "Water trees between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m. During this timeframe trees are at their maximum moisture-retaining level."
• "Apply water slowly so that it sinks deeply into the soil. Soaker hoses, drip emitters, bubblers and hand-held hoses are preferable to sprinklers."