It's true, Fall is one of the best times of the year for tree planting, trenching and excavation work. Most people agree that adding trees and shrubs to your property is a necessary enhancement. While planning your fall planting and digging projects, it's important to remember to follow best practices which help to prevent potential hazards before they ruin your plans.
Here's a Quick List of Best Practices for
Fall Planting & Digging
👉Save this list for quick reference and to help you stay safe, prevent damage and comply with your specific state, municipal, or local regulations when planning your planting and digging fall projects.
Know Where to Plant
Knowing where to plant your trees and shrubs is important due to the underground and overhead facilities around your home and need to be planned in advance. 'Plan before you plant' is always a good rule of thumb. Whether you are planting a single plant or an entire landscape, plan first, then plant. Good planning is a worthwhile investment of time that will pay off in greater enjoyment of attractive and useful property grounds. It's much easier to move plants on paper then to dig them after planting in the wrong place. A good plan saves many fall planting and digging mistakes.
Remember: Every Dig Requires a 📞CALL
Before you dig, call 811 to prevent potential hazards and to follow all applicable excavation and trenching requirements in your state. State laws vary so you'll want to contact 811 at least 48 hours in advance of your digging project and many states allow you to preschedule your work up to 10 days in advance.
Typically, utility companies have a few days to respond to your request. Once your request is received, they'll send out locators who will come to your dig site to mark the approximate location of buried utilities with paint or flags so that you can avoid them and prevent site damage.
Understand Your Markers
Take a look at this simple color chart below to familiarize yourself with each color code and what each code indicates. Having an understanding of this markings guide helps to prevent accidents, damage and service interruptions while working on or near underground facilities.
Always Focus on Safety
With more than thirty-one million home improvement digging projects estimated per year, it's important to focus on safety even when you think your project is fairly small. It's the law. Many utility lines are buried just a few inches right below the ground and can get hit with little effort while digging holes for shrubs, mailboxes and fences. Instead or risking unnecessary headaches down the road, keep yourself and your community safe by following these best practices.
To make sure your project and site are in compliance and that you're keeping the environment and everyone around safe, you’ll want to make sure that you avoid damaging underground utility lines when you dig.
If you’re a homeowner working on a do-it-yourself project or if you're a professional, dial 811 before you start your project, for damage prevention. Ensure that you follow guidelines and legal requirements used, for everyone's safety.
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About the Author:
Nicole Benjamin is a Digital Marketing Coordinator with BOSS Solutions. Nicole has been in the marketing industry for over ten years. She is committed to sharing the message of safety and damage prevention to utilities and locators nationwide.