treeseer

On the shady side, running between a basal canker and a pruning wound. Can't tell if it's just a bark disease or deeper. Stereum sp.?

Could it be all this debris is growth that's now shaded out by the bushy reaction to the hack job? Good luck writing specs that will guide the next round to be more sustainable.

Hard to be sure but has it already successfully inosculated over the lower brace? How bad is the fork that all that junk was intended to reinforce? Reduce outer 5-15% and monitor?

I get the pun with the mule, but where does Harry fit in? O and now that you know the fungus, how does that inform management decisions?

Good advice so far. Probe the soil ahead of time and avoid cutting big roots. The leaching issue pales in comparison.

I wouldn't bolt either--through-cabling requires just a 1/4" hole. If extra movement will not make the attachment better, isn't a static system preferable?

That's cool, like I have said before and I sit by it that I have seen plenty of failures of bad forks over the years. I would not refuse to install support where needed on any species. To leave such a tree unsupported only to get a ring later on that it crushed a schoolbus full of toddlers might leave one open to suspicions of neglect, professional misconduct, etc. And like I have said before and I lay down and take a nap by it that I have seen plenty of failures due to bad pruning over the years, so maybe we should not prune either?

Doesn't any strap compress the cambium? The second cable that I proposed would require a 1/4" hole. Minimal invasion.

Just took another look at that last pic--is that the other side? The one trunk is looking rather poorly from that incomplete view. I couldn't find 'give on' in the dictionary of british slang but you might look into heat applications as practiced by fruit growers for millennia before scoffing so. Cauterising and drenching might take an hour--you guys really charge that much? All we can do is describe reasonable options. Clients decide.

"...Where there is a high target area the safest bet is to remove any diseased/dangerous tree unless it can be surveyed to show that the tree is sound or has managed to keep the fungi at bay.[" I agree with this. Judging by the pics, one could survey/assess the tree and find it reasonably sound---after a few treatments for those issues. Might it not also get better and better, with pruning and soil works? "Fungi misidentified" I've never seen any US wood decay fungus that was so sulfur-colored that was not Laetiporus, by my imperfect reckoning. "...the merip could be some kind of honey fungus also." Come again? No matter the fungi ID, simple sounding might confirm it's not in the outer 4" of wood, and that's all most trees need ime. "It would also be completely bankers to comment on that tree from these pics. Not enough info." What other info do you need? btw i asked about soil disturbance and changes in drainage and mtc. history. I agree it would be bankers to comment and work on this tree based on images. Bankers, as in Money in the Bank. Trees like this getting routine care every 3-5 years; that's the kind of client to base a business on.

0 for 5 so far, ok...the Ganoderma sp. is up in the air over here; G lucidum is a sort of dumping ground because no one can agree on the others. If it's a bit shiny and reddish on top that may be the best term; I play is safe with sp. The sulfur-colored one does not look like Merip to me. We have far more Laetiporus ime. I agree with using "would I want my family sleeping under it?" as a guideline. Many people have been sleeping under this tree for a long time. "I can't think of any good reason to keep this tree at all."--how bout shade, air and water cleaning, wildlife, property values...? Steven, I condemned a dozen trees before noon today. I do not want to save every tree going, but there's no point calling for removal just because of an undefined risk from a few unassessed issues, without reviewing potential mitigation options. Sorry bout the sideways pics, but isn't there a big green flag waving in that full-tree pic?

I just got the note and pics below. What should I do? "I am glad to see there is someone out there who has a risk tolerance for trees like I do. At least we call it a risk tolerance, for lack of a better word. Anyway, it is getting harder and harder not to condemn trees in today's litigious world. I have a tree I would like your opinion on this Q robur: 1. severe lean toward structures 15 to 20 degrees 2. presence of 2 fungi: Laetiporus sulphureus and Ganoderma lucidum 3. proximity to structures 4. structural sheer crack along center of trunk due to lean 5. over 40 inch dbh. 6. Aggressive growth in both trunk diameter and crown expansion. 7. Overall health of tree is very good. 8. The things holding the tree up appear to be in great shape (root buttresses especially and I was glad to see that. 9. Response wood around decay area by Ganoderma conk was also very good. When I put my report together for them I want to include remedial options of crown reduction through retrenchment over a period of time and then a removal cost will be included simply because they asked for it. In the report I include the facts above and would love to retain the tree. My concerns are: Failure is most likely to happen at trunk base and would be immediate causing a maximum amount of damage ( practically flatening the house it is next to.) The fact that the health of the tree is in such good shape is concerning for me because of the presence of decay fungi and their notoriosity for aggressive progression of decay. I wound not want to drill the tree to get measurements of decay. I would just be spreading the decay fungi and causing more good than harm. I feel this is a tree most people would say is a clear removal. For me a clear removal tree is only one kind. The one that has failed and is laying on the house. My question to you is how to I make a good argument to retain the tree? What are your thoughts. What would you recommend? I know it is hard with just a few pics, but any input would be greatly appreciated."

Where is the decline?

With through bolts; this was before through-cabling and end fasteners were developed.

Overview phooey; 7 hours of strain, after bidding it at 4! O well made it up by side pruning a Liquidambar to free the driveway of the Dreaded Gumballs. Petersburg, Illinois, US, the last on this list: Menard County Trails and Greenways The list compiled mainly by a mentor of mine, Guy Sternberg, author of Native Trees for North American Landscapes from Timber Press He's been responsible for me spending dozens of hours volunteering on old trees, but also some paying work so no complaints. In the SE US I'm used to many Aesculus sp. leaves looking poorly, or totally shed, by this time of the season, so I confess I did not diagnose the discoloration.

No worries, apparently. Past owner saw them in 1976 when moving in. No signs of maintenance in the interim. 2014: the first cable looks quite new, the second had raveled one turn of the splice, which we 'remedied' by vinyl tape and circular clamps. Response growth is quite striking. One leader thickened and sprouted above the cable, the other below. All within the parameters of 'normal' for the species and age. No sign of 'karate' failures, though the cable is quite low, now. Tree may have been planted in 1834. This traditional technology is underrecognised and underused. these 2 look to have a dozen more years left, half a century in all. Dieback from root abuse and old age sadly lessens contributions, but happily lessens risk. I still gave a bid on smaller ones higher up, but no sale. Scheduled reevaluation in January. Bad fork would not likely benefit from extra movement, so dynamic would not fit the objective. Many cables do not need frequent inspections, or carry increased liability. A sorely underrecognised service for maintaining older trees, and the habitat within.

Clean and cauterize the lesions Nourish roots to help sealing Then Give it a year or 2 What looks terminal about it?

Ok fair enough. Tho I am not buying the whole barrel of "ruin natural design is what we are doing." grog. I have seen too much work by good crews like yours that preserves the natural growth habit, form, and design, by limiting cut size and % off etc. But then client anxiety and 'erring on the side of caution' etc. etc. come along and rear their ugly heads. Arborists can indeed be godlike enough to trust the tree enough to retain its basic structure, in most cases... In sooth, it looks sometimes like the objective there is often 50% saproxylic habitat, 50% tree benefit retention. In the US ime it seldom gets beyond 90% tree, 10% beasties......

Ok fair enough. Tho I am not buying the whole barrel of "ruin natural design is what we are doing." grog. I have seen too much work by good crews like yours that preserves the natural growth habit, form, and design, by limiting cut size and % off etc. But then client anxiety and 'erring on the side of caution' etc. etc. come along and rear their ugly heads. Arborists can indeed be godlike enough to trust the tree enough to retain its basic structure, in most cases...

Tonnes worth of holding wood, good codit, no targets, what a waste. If propping was not practical then your original 35% off idea would have fit the scenario portrayed. But trrees are just potential firewood, as we all know. Just as we bloody brilliant arborists can knowledgeably assess "defects" from decay, and the Great Pumpkin shall surely visit this October, to bring the world peace. iow, rubbish!

I first heard this verb as a pruning spec this June, and tried to sort out its meaning in practice. It would help very much to see an 'after' image of that tree, if you could? The conceptual connection between "Wow look at that defect" ergo "Cut most of it off (ruin it) so it doesn't fail in my lifetime and makes habitat" seems to short-circuit the assessment process. When the VTA going gets tough, the tree and the owner need the arborist to step back, take a breath, and Look at the tree as segments = see what's holding it up, and Carefully consider how it might fail, and what to do about it. The assessor MUST take the time and concentration on these steps. When s/he looks for ways around this challenging process, that's when opinions like "occasionally the reality is fell and replace is the wiser option" start getting bandied about, as if we are wiser than the owner about their budget, their values and those of the surrounding community (human and ecological), etc. etc. We are there to present ALL reasonable options, not to make up their minds for them by imposing our views of 'reality' and our alleged 'wisdom'. David, in response to your question, would your recent vid of the oak in the field getting coronetted be considered a light ruin or a hard prune? The size of the cuts (20 cm?)and amount of green lost seemed to guarantee the spread of heart rot, which is all good if saproxylic habitat is the primary goal. Maybe the difference is that Ruining takes away natural structure and viable defenses that the tree can Retrench back to, while Pruning preserves the growth habit, structure, and the tree's ability to manage the associates. As for the OP beech, it's way overdue for a structural pruning all around, as evidenced by the failure. The limb now in question has a bad fork that would NOT benefit from extra movement, so dynamic cable would NOT be the choice. 3/16" steel would work, but let's step back and take a breath and suss out the entire tree before presuming to judge what fate is best for it.

Ugly one, that. Looks like much of it is bark? The last pic, next tree over from the burled specimen...the buttress facing the camera has a horizontal bulge; it's a 'belted buttress'. I'm still trying to figure these things out--if anyone has a clue beyond 'perhaps evidence of vascular discontinuity' or 'smells like honey', I'd love to hear it.

Ginormous, to say the least! And it looks like healthy tissue too.

How comfortable is it with that constriction? With the fungal colonisation around the corner, perhaps ungirdling will allow better conduction, and compartmentalisation.

How distinct are these--how many trees make a woodland? Soil improvement via change in cultural practice to change soil conditions might be done on a population, also improving drainage, removing soil from stem tissue,...