Trees That Should've Never Made it This Far

[TreeLogic]

Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Here's one that split down the middle when it hit the ground. A good thing it's gone. Prior to the removal the client said, "Are you sure it's sick? The leaves are still green."

 

[jomoco]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

That's bizarre!

Looks like it's been stuffed with crawdads or somethin for some strange dinosaur feast!

jomoco

 

[banjo]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

That does look weird. Why is that decay all chunky?

 

[TreeLogic]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

[ QUOTE ]
That does look weird. Why is that decay all chunky?

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't really know. I guess termites and other unknown colonies played a part. It was a pretty tall column with some cavities toward the top, so maybe there were some bird, squirrel, and coon mess in there too. It was crazy to see that thing split into lumber when it hit. Lumber and mud, that is.

So anyway, I thought it would be a cool thread to see some of everybody else's experiences with "trees that should've never made it this far". I know y'all have some good pics.

 

[brendonv]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Crazy. I did this one a couple weeks ago, over 36" DBH, HUGE canopy, how or why it didn't twist itself down on the storms we had is beyong me. Bottom piece had a crack like yours, just covered with a layer of bark.

 

[TreeLogic]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

white oak?

 

[guymayor]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

That pine looks like a lot of nice compost. Brendon's oak, heck, I've measured and retained and retrenched several as hollow as that. Nice strong even layer of wood--that tree could have stood longer than thee, and certainly me.

"Should've Never"...says who, or what? A formula made for pipes? Trees are not pipes. Retrench hollow trees!

Attached has a 5' hollow.

 

[guymayor]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Brendon where there any fungal conks on that white oak?

Here's another view of the post oak i pruned last week.

 

[guymayor]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

It's natural to react to hollows with fear and loathing, because it's hard to sort out being and nothingness, the old existentialist dilemma.

now's when i really miss wulkie--he'd've taken that ball and run it in for a touchdown.

 

[flyingsquirrel25]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Here is a white oak that I cleaned up last summer. You would have never known the decay was so extensive unless you thumped on it with a hammer. Wondered how it stood for so long, and why it didnt fail at the base (instead of 30 ft).

 

[flyingsquirrel25]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

The tree failed in a rain storm last summer.

 

[flyingsquirrel25]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

This is a 372xp with 24" bar for scale. I could have made the cut with my climber with out any problem.

 

[brendonv]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

It was a shagbark hickory.

I feel with a vertical opening down low on that tree gives it more of a weak spot. Wish I had a before pic, large wide spreading canopy. I could envision it twisting itself down.

 

[TreeLogic]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

[ QUOTE ]
That pine looks like a lot of nice compost. Brendon's oak, heck, I've measured and retained and retrenched several as hollow as that. Nice strong even layer of wood--that tree could have stood longer than thee, and certainly me.

"Should've Never"...says who, or what? A formula made for pipes? Trees are not pipes. Retrench hollow trees!

Attached has a 5' hollow.

[/ QUOTE ]

Guy,
I'm sure you just took a glancing look, but my tree was a northern red oak, not a pine. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen a pine go hollow.

 

[JeffL]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Oh, they'll go hollow alright! Usually butt rot moving up from the ground.

 

[TreeLogic]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

[ QUOTE ]
Oh, they'll go hollow alright! Usually butt rot moving up from the ground.

[/ QUOTE ]
Interesting. I've seen them fall apart from the top down, get spongy, or turn into fat wood, but never get a hollow column like other trees. Not doubting you though, just sharing. Love to see some pics. We have mostly Loblolly and Spruce pine here. I wonder if species plays a part.

 

[jomoco]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

I've been inside a very hollow Coulter pine, so yes, they can get hollow.

This is a section of a dead hollow oak that came from about 35 feet up the trunk.

This tree was all over a house in Descanso. As I went up the clients steps to inspect the trunk for the first consultation, I noticed light inside the trunk through a hole, and by peering inside at an upward trajectory, I could see another hole on the opposite side bout 15 feet up.

Where's my crane?

It was one of those crane removals that had me nervous enough to stay with the crane on each pick...like a sissy!

jomoco

 

[guymayor]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

JeffL, same experience with buttrotting red oaks, and no the column is not central or symmetrical like in a pine (one more problem with the shell wall = stability theory)

Jon That tree had so much value when it was alive; shame they could not save it. As for looking through hollows, that is not uncommon in safely retained trees.

What matters is how you manage the load, or if owner or arborist wait for the load to manage them.

 

[guymayor]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

Brendon i agree that twisting or "torsion" is the worst kind of loading. This can be managed by pruning.

 

[jomoco]

Re: Trees That Should\'ve Never Made it This Far

We both know that oak died from grade change as they built new sections of that house all around it with no clue about the tree's needs to survive that close to mankind.

Happens all the time unfortunately.

Few trees are as sensitive to grade change as Q agrifolia is.

jomoco