Big old dude!

Teach them sustainable building in trees? Had a platform which was laid across unions and with some rope. As the tree moves and grows, ropes may need adjustment so they don't get swallowed by the tree. Have used dead twigs to stand the rope off the tree as well.
 
Marsupilaami said:
Teach them sustainable building in trees? Had a platform which was laid across unions and with some rope. As the tree moves and grows, ropes may need adjustment so they don't get swallowed by the tree. Have used dead twigs to stand the rope off the tree as well.
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That may be a great solution, using straps in some way. Hmmmmmm...

Ewok smasher thingies for the win though.
 
JD3000 said:
That may be a great solution, using straps in some way...
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Honestly, that is a terrible idea. There are few things that will f... up a tree faster than wrapping things around them. Even noninvasive cabling if allowed to tighten will cause problems. In comparison, the nails are a complete non-issue.
Dealing with holes is an everyday thing for a tree, birds, and bugs are doing it constantly. Vascular strangulation is not something trees handle well.
 
I know DSMc, that is why I explained what to do about it so the rope is not swallowed. Poor explanation no doubt. I put several twigs inside the loop that goes around the tree. These then make like a collar. It spreads the load, eliminates chafing, and adds flex so as not to strangle the tree as it grows. I wouldn't do it just anywhere, only where I'll be monitoring it from time to time. Twigs could need to be replaced for instance.
Because the modern ropes last so long they need to be removed at some point, too.

Let me know if you still think it is a bad idea DSMc.
 
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A nail is also not just a hole so your argument doesn't convince me it is a non issue. I also don't think we have any animals here who make holes in live trees. Maybe on the east side they have boring bugs in the bigger conifers. Maybe woodpeckers too.

A nail is a continuous source of foreign matter. Would like to know more about this.
 
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Marsupilaami said:
... Let me know if you still think it is a bad idea DSMc.
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Yes, I still think it is a bad idea.:) I understand exactly what you were describing as I have seen it done many times for many different reasons and the long-term outcome is always the same. The theory is to not wound the tree by spreading the load but what actually happens instead of one wound you wind up creating several and as time goes on contact of the strap or cable will occur.

You are right in that a nail does not just make a hole and that is good. An open hole exposes tree cells to oxygen in a manner that causes dysfunction. A nail, screw, or bolt will seal that hole with no further dysfunction other than some minor discoloration over time. Trees deal with this kind of wounding and non-moving inert objects very well and the percentage of damage to cells is relatively small.
 
Just you wait 50 years for my scalding retort (have to wait for another tree to grow big enough to build a platform in). I've torn down the platform due to snow weight, there was a bit of hurt from a 2x4 moving in its crotch. It had been sitting there for 15 years. Anything moving will gnaw for sure.
Meanwhile, please forget what I said and defer to DSMc's greater experience and carefulness.
 
And if I was a kid again, that would be a choice tree for my fort[/QUOTE]

Tree forts are cool. I had one that was built on 15 trees, best fort ever. But teach the little buggers to climb and respect the trees. When I have little ones I plan to have them learning the ropes and climbing.
 
For a yearly music festival we put lasers, smoke, and speakers, into trees.
I've used gaffer tape to protect the bark.
Next time I must remember to bring some sort of soft foam or felt for that purpose.

Also I think, if the bark gets torn off, it helps to seal it with tape. To avoid strangulation, I make a gap in the tape.
 
Leave the boards. Unless you have been hired by the owner of the tree and they are interested in limiting their liability and preserving the tree to a higher degree I think you should leave it exactly how it is. Much of my time as a child was spent in the forest and down by a creek near my house. Time spent down there taught me how to work, how to use tools, how to climb trees, to appreciate being outside in all weather, taught me that there was something better than organized sports, and is very likely what pushed me to become an arborist. The boards and nails are insignificant in that trees life. Perhaps in its old age it likes knowing that it sacrificing a little bark and a few penetrations into its cambium might be keeping a child outside for a few hours each day instead of glued to the screens and video games that most kids are. Try and walk by that tree more often. Try to meet those kids but come to them with humility and wanting to learn from them. Don’t try and change a place that potentially is very special to them. Maybe it is the only place they feel a sense of control, of independence, of agency, and where they can be at peace from all the crazieness in their lives. A place where they just get to be themselves. If I was that tree I would welcome the kids, the foot traffic on my roots, the inevitable nails, the curse words painted on my trunk. I would like to think that trees would be much like the great teacher who invited nails into his palms and earlier said “let the children come unto me.” They do harm at times but they do not know. Sometimes trees can be a savior too. They certainly have been mine.

Happy easter.

Sent from my iPad
 
RyanCafferky said:
Leave the boards. Unless you have been hired by the owner of the tree and they are interested in limiting their liability and preserving the tree to a higher degree I think you should leave it exactly how it is. Much of my time as a child was spent in the forest and down by a creek near my house. Time spent down there taught me how to work, how to use tools, how to climb trees, to appreciate being outside in all weather, taught me that there was something better than organized sports, and is very likely what pushed me to become an arborist. The boards and nails are insignificant in that trees life. Perhaps in its old age it likes knowing that it sacrificing a little bark and a few penetrations into its cambium might be keeping a child outside for a few hours each day instead of glued to the screens and video games that most kids are. Try and walk by that tree more often. Try to meet those kids but come to them with humility and wanting to learn from them. Don’t try and change a place that potentially is very special to them. Maybe it is the only place they feel a sense of control, of independence, of agency, and where they can be at peace from all the crazieness in their lives. A place where they just get to be themselves. If I was that tree I would welcome the kids, the foot traffic on my roots, the inevitable nails, the curse words painted on my trunk. I would like to think that trees would be much like the great teacher who invited nails into his palms and earlier said “let the children come unto me.” They do harm at times but they do not know. Sometimes trees can be a savior too. They certainly have been mine.

Happy easter.

Sent from my iPad
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Great post! Some of my best childhood memories are of building tree forts with friends using scavenged wood and bent nails. Far too few kids today will ever have the pleasure.

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I agree we should encourage kids to play in trees. My best memories are of that too. Falling out while leaning on a board that wasn't nailed in well (broken radius and ulna), falling out of a Norway maple that my brother bet me I couldn't climb any higher (no significant injuries), swinging on grapevines at Grandma's, tying 2 trees together, etc...

I said remove them because I'd be concerned about how well they are attached. Nails aren't going to hurt the tree...but bad nails may well lead to kids being hurt. Find a better way to get kids there and keep them safe. Unfortunately in a public place the liability concerns probably trump the ability to help kids have fun. Blame that on the parents who think it is everybody else's job to take care of their kids and the lawyers who capitalize on that.
 
ATH said:
I agree we should encourage kids to play in trees. My best memories are of that too. Falling out while leaning on a board that wasn't nailed in well (broken radius and ulna), falling out of a Norway maple that my brother bet me I couldn't climb any higher (no significant injuries), swinging on grapevines at Grandma's, tying 2 trees together, etc...

I said remove them because I'd be concerned about how well they are attached. Nails aren't going to hurt the tree...but bad nails may well lead to kids being hurt. Find a better way to get kids there and keep them safe. Unfortunately in a public place the liability concerns probably trump the ability to help kids have fun. Blame that on the parents who think it is everybody else's job to take care of their kids and the lawyers who capitalize on that.
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Also good points. Sometimes I wonder how my friends and I survived. Lol.

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