Spring Tree Planting Tips: AEP Ohio Urges Customers to Consider Power Lines

ZANESVILLE, OH –As spring arrives, it’s a vital time for planting trees. Ensuring proper placement can make a big difference for both your trees and the power lines in your area.

Before planting, it’s essential to assess the surrounding space. Take a moment to look up for power lines and nearby electrical equipment that could be affected as your tree grows. Keeping trees clear of power lines is crucial for their health and safety.

“Springtime is a key planting period of time for our customers, and we ask our customers that before they choose to plant a tree, they take some time to look up and look around, looking for power lines and looking for electrical equipment that that tree could interfere with as it continues to grow and becomes a mature tree,” said Dale Hopkins, Forestry Manager at AEP Ohio.

Proper spacing is important: small trees, reaching 10 to 15 feet tall, should be planted at least 10 to 15 feet away from power lines. Medium-sized trees, which can grow to 25 to 30 feet tall, need to be about 25 to 30 feet away, while large shade trees should be planted at least 50 feet away from power lines.

“Trees are one of the greatest causes of power outages for the electrical utility, and it happens one of two ways: by a tree growing into the power lines or a tree falling and tearing down the power lines. On any given day, we have 400 tree crews working for AEP Ohio, out there assessing our power lines, looking at our equipment for trees that could interfere and either working to trim those trees back or remove trees that could fall,” Hopkins said.

AEP’s forestry staff encourages anyone unsure about a tree’s distance to power lines to reach out. You can call AEP Ohio’s Forestry line at 614-883-6987 or email AEPOhioForestry@AEP.com to have a crew assess the situation and help prevent future outages.