The beetles spend most of their lives as grubs in the soil. Adult beetles emerge in late June to early July, and begin feeding at the tops of trees. These early feeding beetles emit pheromones as they munch on the leaves, causing others to congregate. As they feed, they move down the tree, causing the leaves to be ‘skeletonized’, leaving just the veins behind. These lacy leaves then commonly drop from the tree, making it look like fall has arrived in the middle of summer.

An anonymous neighbor nominated the Archer family, who lost a significant portion of their maple tree in last year's June tornados. Neighbors helped clean up the debris that fell, but the rest of the tree still stood, so we were called in to finish the job.

We were happy to help, as the Archers had other significant financial burdens due to their newborn son, Chandler, being born with clubbed feet. Medical and travel expenses meant tree removal was likely at the bottom of their priority list! We crossed this item off their "to-do" list so they can focus on their beautiful growing family! 

Our second story is about Tyler Call, nominated by his mother, Linda. Tyler, a newlywed, purchased a house with his wife. Sadly, about a year ago, she passed away. The emotional, physical and financial burden of caring for the trees on his property became too much to handle on his own, so we stepped in to help. Tyler's backyard was filled with dying and decaying trees that posed a risk to himself and his dogs. We were glad they called in professional help! It was difficult to capture a before and after record due to the number of trees in his backyard. He has a small forest back there! We removed many dangerous limbs over the roof, deck and pool. We also removed several volunteer trees around the property to improve his home's appearance.

We hope we were able to restore pride and confidence in his home, and hope for his continued healing following the loss of his wife.

Amelia was nominated anonymously by a caring friend. We couldn't tell her story better ourselves:

​"Amelia is a single mom, who, despite a lifetime of financial hardships, has managed to do more for her family and her community than seems humanly possible with only 24 hours in each day. While raising her two children, Amy provided for them by running her own nail care business. Working out of a tiny room at the back of another shop, she has a group of loyal customers and makes enough to keep food on the table, but not much else. And yet, while running her business and raising her kids, Amy has also done what many would see as impossible: she went back to school! First taking classes part time at Metro, and then moving on to full-time studies at UNO, my friend will, on Dec. 15th, walk with her classmates to receive her diploma for her bachelor’s degree in accounting! There are no words to describe how proud we all are of her. This is the woman who has always been there for me... well for anyone who need help, really. She can’t help people financially, so she helps them with her time, her hands, and elbow grease. Where she finds the time or the energy, I’ll never know. Sadly, with absolutely no leeway in her finances, there has been no money for much-needed things like home repairs and tree services."
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We're getting into late summer and iron chlorosis is rearing its ugly head for many trees in the Omaha area. This is a common disease in Eastern Nebraska that is easy to treat and cost effective if you plan on keeping your tree long term. Chlorosis is fatal if left untreated for multiple seasons. Don't delay addressing this issue! If you have a relatively young tree that is continually chlorotic, consider replacing it with a different species.
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In the early to mid-summer, you may notice your leaves turning an abnormal color like yellow or light green. This discoloration may occur on your whole tree, or just sections of the canopy. Look closely at the leaves and you'll spot green veins, like in this photo. In advanced stages of disease, leaves will begin to turn brown and fall off, and limbs will begin to die back. 
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Yes - iron deficiency kills trees. Trees need iron to manufacture chlorophyll. When a tree lacks chlorophyll, it can't produce adequate energy via photosynthesis and the tree will begin to decline. 

A tree in decline is also more susceptible to other diseases and insects. 

Meet Andrew - our newest addition to the Arbor Aesthetics team! We're excited to announce that we're going beyond tree trimming and removal and will now be offering Insect & Disease Management services:
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• Pine & spruce fungus
• Crab apple rust (for crab apple, hawthorn
  ​and pear trees)
• Emerald ash borer
• Bur oak blight
• Spider mites, bag worms, pine moths, and more
• Anthracnose fungus
• Iron deficiency
• Deep root fertilization
  
  Do your trees suffer from any of these? Not sure what your tree is suffering from? Give us a call. We're here ​to help!
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​Delivering the news to Jill that she was the recipient of our charity program was wonderful. But even more wonderful was hearing the news that Jill's doctor delivered the week that we performed the work: Jill was cancer free!

​Congratulations, Jill! We wish you good health and happiness through your recovery and beyond! 

Last December, we asked the Omaha community to nominate a family in need to receive free tree care services for our first annual "Gift of Beautiful Trees" charity program. We received many nominations, and it was heartwarming to hear so many stories of generosity and neighbors helping neighbors. It was so difficult to pick one winner that we ended up selecting TWO families to receive free services. 

The winner, whom we shall call 'D' for all intents and purposes, was a wounded war veteran. He was anonymously nominated by a neighbor, who noticed he had some dangerous dead trees in his yard, as well as some dead limbs hanging directly over the wheelchair ramp leading up to his front door. We knew right away we had to help D.

I stopped by the job site to snap some photos of the crew working and D's wife called me inside to chat. I wasn't expecting to walk into the living room filled with BEAUTIFUL hand-carved wooden model cars and trucks. This was D's hobby, pride and joy, as he was wheelchair bound. D insisted I take one of his model cars home as a token of gratitude. His gift was awesome, but what I enjoyed most was hearing how D was so overcome with joy that his neighbors nominated him for this project. He explained that for years, he used his riding mower to tend to his neighbors' lawns until his body just couldn't handle it anymore. We shed tears of joy together; his tears were of gratitude toward us and his neighbors, and my tears were of gratitude that Jeff and I have a gift to share with the people of our community, in turn making it a better place.
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It's not just tree trimming we were giving away; it's peace of mind, it's pride in your home, it's thinking of those around you and taking care of your neighbors. There are good people in this world. 

I hope this story inspires YOU to think about the gifts you have to offer those around you. It doesn't matter if they're big or small, complex or easy, costly or free. Being generous with your time and talent is what truly makes this world a better place. 

~ Amy Grewe

Last summer, we set out to gather feedback from our customers by leaving response postcards behind at every job. 114 postcards later, we couldn't be happier with the response. 

Our customers, overall, have given us a "GPA" of 3.84 out of 4.0 (an A-).  While we may never be perfect, we strive for that A+ every time. We're listening carefully to our customers' needs and experiences and making sure every customer has the best experience possible.