Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30, and the Big Bend has been hit hard in seven of the last ten years. Hermine, Michael, Idalia, the May 2024 EF-2 tornadoes, and Helene each left thousands of Tallahassee homeowners dealing with downed trees, roof damage, and weeks-long power outages. The trees that survived intact had something in common: their owners had done the prep work before the season opened. This is the homeowner-side checklist — what to do in May, what to watch through summer, and what to have ready when a named storm enters the Gulf.
May: Inspection and Pruning (Before the Season Opens)
The single most valuable thing you can do is finish structural pruning and dead-wood removal by May 31. ANSI A300 best practice calls for 30 days of recovery before peak risk. Schedule an ISA-certified arborist inspection in April or early May to identify dead branches, structural defects, co-dominant unions with included bark, and species-specific failure risks. The arborists in our network walk the lot, write a written quote, and execute by Memorial Day weekend.
For laurel oaks over 30 inches DBH, request a TRAQ (Tree Risk Assessment Qualification) evaluation. Laurel oak is Tallahassee’s highest-failure species in named storms. For live oaks, the priority is dead-wood removal — see our live oak care guide for the species-specific pruning calendar. For sabal palms, fronds should be reduced to the “10 and 2 o’clock” position; over-pruning (“hurricane cuts” stripping to a single tuft) is not best practice and stresses the palm.
June: Documentation and Property Audit
By the first week of June, have these items ready: digital photos of every mature tree on the property from multiple angles, a copy of your homeowners insurance policy with the debris-removal sublimit identified (typically $500–$1,000 for tree debris), and contact information for your insurance agent in your phone. If a tree comes down on the house, claims process faster when you can document the pre-storm condition.
Identify your service utility. City of Tallahassee Utilities serves inside city limits; Talquin Electric Cooperative serves Wakulla, Gadsden, Liberty, and outer Leon County; Duke Energy Florida serves a small eastern sliver. The utility contact matters because ANSI Z133 prohibits tree-service crews from touching energized conductors. If a tree hits a line, the utility goes first, the tree crew goes second. See our storm cleanup page for the full utility-first protocol.
July–August: Mid-Season Monitoring
After every significant rain event or wind event, walk the property and look for: leaf scorch concentrated on one limb (could indicate root damage from saturation), new lean or soil heaving at the root plate, broken branches hung up in the canopy, and fresh sap or weeping wounds on the trunk. If any of these appear, schedule a follow-up assessment before the next storm.
July and August are the safest months for additional live oak pruning if you need it — mid-summer heat slows wound-exploiting fungi and the nitidulid beetles that vector oak wilt. Avoid major pruning of pines mid-summer; southern pine beetle pressure is highest then. Read our southern pine beetle guide.
September–October: Peak Risk Window
Atlantic hurricane activity peaks in early-to-mid September. The Big Bend has been hit by major storms in this window — Idalia (Aug 30, 2023), Helene (Sep 26, 2024). When a named storm enters the Gulf with a forecast track within 200 miles of Tallahassee, the homeowner-side actions are: move vehicles away from large trees, secure or bring inside anything that can become a projectile, charge phones and portable batteries, fill water containers, and locate the breaker panel and water shutoff.
Do not attempt last-minute pruning. Crews are booked solid the moment a cone of uncertainty forms, and rushed pruning during storm watch creates poorly-cut wounds at the worst possible time.
Landfall and Immediate Post-Storm
During the storm, stay inside and away from windows facing the largest trees on the property. After the wind drops below sustained 30 mph, you can begin a walk-around — but only after confirming no live power lines are involved. Photograph all damage before moving anything.
The Trees Most Likely to Fail
If you have any of these on the property within striking distance of a structure, request a TRAQ assessment before June 1: laurel oak over 30 inches DBH, water oak over 24 inches DBH (sudden plate failure on karst soils), longleaf or loblolly pine over 60 feet tall, sabal palm with visible bud-rot symptoms, sweetgum with co-dominant trunk, and any tree with visible Ganoderma fruiting at the base.
Pre-Hurricane Tree Inspection — tap to talk with an arborist
ISA-certified arborist on-site assessment. Dead-wood removal, structural pruning, TRAQ risk letters, sabal palm trimming, §163.045 risk documentation. Schedule before May 31 for pre-season availability.
Call (850) 820-2166 — Mon–Sat 7am–7pm. arborist walkthrough.
Related TTS Resources
This page is part of the TTS hurricane-season playbook. For the full season hub (30/14/3/1-day countdown, post-storm triage, and insurance claim mechanics) see the Tallahassee Hurricane Tree Prep Hub. For pricing on every Tallahassee tree service (removal, trimming, stump, emergency, arborist, crane, cabling), see the Tallahassee Tree Service Cost Guide.
