Termite Damage - Options and Suggestions?

K

kronic24601

Location
Los Angeles
I recently moved into this house and it has this tree in the backyard. I would LIKE to put up a tree house on it for the kids BUT ... it has some pretty gnarly looking termite damage (I assume).

* I'd like to say it's sectionalized that that one branch, but it's scattered around.
* Even though that branch has a lot of holes in it, it's still quite sturdy. Kids love to swing off it so i'd hate to cut it off (plus I have no idea if the tree would respond well to that large of a section being removed?
* I haven't treated the tree with anything to-date. I cannot see any termites, but I assume they are still there (my house was tented before I moved in).

Does the tree have to go entirely? Lost cause to put up a treehouse? Can it be saved? If so, what do I do?

Would love your thoughts.
IMG_3944.webp IMG_4008.webp IMG_1399.webp IMG_8688.webp
 
Too many consulting arborists condemn viable trees. Don't trust em. Trust the tree--it has survived grievous damage from topping decades ago. At the worst topping wound the tree shows an inconsequential amount of decay--along with vigorous response by the tree-- and the consultants are called in on their black horses, shooting snake oil with both barrels.

evo, u ok? And JD, the most essential expertise is not about bugs or crud--it's compartmentalization.

Don't worry about termites. The treehouse might work in there. Call an ISA Board-Certified Master Arborist who understands restoration pruning, like Nick at TreeCareLA. 323-327-1611
 
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guymayor said:
Too many consulting arborists condemn viable trees. Don't trust em. Trust the tree--it has survived grievous damage from topping decades ago. At the worst topping wound the tree shows an inconsequential amount of decay--along with vigorous response by the tree-- and the consultants are called in on their black horses, shooting snake oil with both barrels.

evo, u ok? And JD, the most essential expertise is not about bugs or crud--it's compartmentalization.

Don't worry about termites. The treehouse might work in there. Call an ISA Board-Certified Master Arborist who understands restoration pruning, like Nick at TreeCareLA. 323-327-1611
Click to expand...
Burnt out I guess... Tree looks like it has had a rough go with things, and is hanging on by a thread. Sure you could do x/y/z and it would help, and you could keep it around for years. But some times you just need to put down a sick dog.
 
I'm no tree condemner thank you and yes I know.

Far too many assumptions and presumptions made around here based on a few selected typed words. It just starts pissing contests.

Nick would be an excellent choice.
 
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So hard for trees to catch a break when arborists focus on bugs and crud with no mention/acknowledgement
of the good in the tree. Maybe it's because this forum has that title!
 
That, my friend, is an ugly, beaten-up tree. No one here is going to say "it's fine", in writing, without seeing it in person. It reminds me of my 1980 Datsun king cab pickup truck, after 20 years of "use". However, it's also a substantial tree, and perhaps worthy of some love.

@cerviarborist notes that it needs a formal tree risk assessment. That assessment gives fairly standard actionable knowledge to the homeowner and protects the assessor as well. Some on this forum will note that within the ISA tree risk assessment qualification ranks, not all assessors are equal, and that is also very true. Ideally, you will find someone specially suited to identify tree issues and tree growth responses.

@guymayor is spot on, that trees can take a whack and frequently recover/retain their structural integrity. There are professionals who know more or less about these topics, and you can spend limitless $ on testing. You could, for instance, import a German assessor to pull-test each branch three times over the course of a year to establish a baseline for each branch for future monitoring. There is, nonetheless, a huge area of unknowns when it comes to tree structural integrity, that make it difficult to predict time of failure. You need to decide if you are more interested in the odds of human weight/force bringing about failure, or the consequences of failure. If the former, hire an assessor. If the latter, then don't put up the tree house.

You're unlikely to get a completely clean bill of health on that tree, for obvious reasons, but you cannot plant and grow a tree of that stature in your lifetime within which to put a tree house. "Living a little" is a definite consideration, at minimum in consultation with a TRAQ ISA arborist. Also, you can always reduce your mortality risk in other ways, e.g. by driving less and exercising more.

Hth...
 
I also like @guymayor 's suggestion to hire someone skilled at restoration pruning. There is so much response growth on most of those cuts, but the wound in the last photo does not show similar response growth. There's a good chance it will develop visible response growth like the other wounds, faster, if the sides of the wound are rid of dead wood and given clean borders.
 
Yes wound cleaning can help, and root invigoration can help tree response even more.

I think Nick got TRAQ but I'd recommend him either way. BCMA is a much more robust qualification--even with the passing score lowered!

A tree house can be designed to support the parts of the tree that might benefit most from that bracing. O and that tree is not ugly; I have seen ugly trees!
 
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