Tree and lawn care services deal with prolonged winter weather

WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) - On the final day of March, snowflakes fell across the Wausau area Thursday morning, making it feel more like winter rather than the spring season. As the weather continues to be winter-like, tree and lawn care services are continuing to work where they can.

Winter still is busy for tree services, like T&E Tree Surgery Inc in Wausau. They are still trimming branches, cutting trees and picking up debris. However, the late winter/early spring is not the easiest time of year to be working.

“Springtime is usually kind of a rougher time of year because things are getting soft and muddy,” said Nick Stubbe, one of the owners of T&E. “Our trucks and equipment are pretty heavy so if we try to go into yards, we end up doing more damage than we’re doing good.”

The conditions can be so tricky to get through, it limits where they can continue to work.

“We got road limits to work around so it’s hard to get to a lot of places with our trucks being heavier than a pickup truck,” said Stubbe. “Obviously we can’t get into the townships too much. Mostly in the city of Wausau, we have to stay in.”

Weather presents other challenges where they do end up working. For example, high winds can make working in the bucket difficult.

“Working in heavier winds, you try and drop a branch in a certain spot and it ends up blowing it 15-20 feet elsewhere,” said Stubbe.

Frozen branches can also make things tricky.

“Yesterday, we had an ice storm so when we go to cut down a tree that’s covered in ice, obviously the branches are going to be a little bit more slippery so it’s going to be hazardous,” said Stubbe.

It’s nothing new for tree-trimming companies, but for lawn care companies, they’re eagerly awaiting the arrival of spring. For Roy Yach, owner of Yach’s Lawn Care, he can’t begin work until warmer weather arrives.

“Just waiting around ‘til it gets warmer out,” said Yach. “You think it’s going to be nice and warm, but then you got cold weather, you got snow, you got rain that freezes. It’s pretty challenging.”

Yach says he’s behind from where he was at this point last year.

“Last year at this time, March 14th is when we started doing clean-ups so we’re already about two-to-three weeks behind from last year,” said Yach. “We’re going to be doing a lot of catching up the next couple of weeks.”

According to Yach, it’s important to get started on lawn care soon. He needs to do a spring clean-up for his clients’ properties before he begins mowing and treating the lawn. He typically wants to begin the mowing by May 1st, but the weather could make that hard.

“I’d really like to get started sooner rather than later because I’m getting antsy,” said Yach. “We really can’t do many clean-ups during lawn care because clean-ups take so much more time. That’s why the middle of March is usually a good time for clean-ups.”

While the waiting game continues, it’s something the two know is just part of living in the area.

“You get used to it because you obviously can’t control the weather, so when you do it enough, you work with it and not against it,” said Stubbe.

“Old man winter’s been sticking around too long,” said Yach. “We need to bring on the summer.”

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