Those not born in the Rio Grande Valley probably think the trees here aren’t very big. If you were to put one of our gorgeous Honey Mesquite, Prospis glandulosa, trees up in an old-growth hardwood forest in New York, yeah, it would be dwarfed.

Put that same mesquite tree next to a single-story house in the Valley, and it can tower over the roof, providing shade and cooler interiors. Graceful branches with feathery leaves gently sweep along the roofs in our gentle South Texas breezes – a nap-inducing scene if you’ve tied a hammock between two trees.

In stronger winds, those same branches dance and waft, scraping the grit off roofing shingles, eventually (quicker than you think) compromising the durability of the roof. Homeowner insurance agents don’t like to see that type of roof scarring which could mean less insurance money coming your way if you have a claim.

In my alter-ego, I’m an External Affairs Officer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) during federally declared disasters, deploying when I’m called.

We’re entering the Hurricane Season: June 1 through November 30.

I’d be remiss as a FEMA spokesperson not to mention a couple of things about preparedness. Like, it’s too late to prepare when the weather reporter begins broadcasting a hurricane sighting.

Sure, there’s about 10 days to prepare, and always the possibility the hurricane will change course at the VERY LAST MINUTE — and no one should gamble that closely whether to prepare or not.

There are some things you can do now to help protect your home from a hostile weather environment.

Remember the mesquite tree with the wonderful branches? Mesquite trees are great at self-pruning. They drop limbs at random like a tin robot self-destructing piece by piece.

Detached tree limbs, in the emergency management field, are known as projectiles. In war, bomb debris are projectiles. Put the speed of a hurricane-force wind behind a tree limb and it sounds like a war zone bouncing around on your roof or crashing through a wall or window.

That’s a lengthy lead-in to say you might want to check your roof line and trim tree branches from it. At the same time, dislodge dead wood from the tree canopy if possible.

While you’re laboring, check the power line to your house. Lop off swaying branches away from over or under the power line.

Even a slim branch, with enough wind power behind it, can cause a power line to snap. The neighborhood may not be without electricity, but you could be.

After a storm has passed, power companies begin restoring power where state emergency managers direct them, generally to the hardest hit areas and the heaviest populations first.

The tree trimming project should be done well in advance of a pending storm to give debris collection companies time to collect would-be projectiles from residential curbs and county roadsides. You don’t want your debris to damage neighboring structures.

Another recommendation by those in emergency management is to have a disaster supply kit. Those are fun. Check it out at www.ready.gov.