my neighbor killed my oak tree, can i prove it? 2 or 3 times in the last10 to 15 years i found copper bars in the ground at the base. the tree has been drying for quite awhile, needs to come down. can i prove it and how costly.
how can i prove it?
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BayouTree
ArboristSite Operative
You probably can't prove anything if the tree has been dying for the last 10 to 15 years. I don't get the connection with the tree dying and the copper bars in the ground. 
If he herbicided the tree there are tests that could be done to show that.
If he herbicided the tree there are tests that could be done to show that.aren't their old wive's tales about copper nails? talked to certified arborist on the phone, he told me $1000 dollars to check for herbasides and they might not find it. one estimate to remove tree was $1600. the neighbor has been an sob since i moved in, i'd love to make him pay. should i try and fight it or just cut it down? thanks.
aren't their old wive's tales about copper nails? talked to certified arborist on the phone, he told me $1000 dollars to check for herbasides and they might not find it. one estimate to remove tree was $1600. the neighbor has been an sob since i moved in, i'd love to make him pay. should i try and fight it or just cut it down? thanks.
BayouTree
ArboristSite Operative
I looked it up last night and did see some info on copper nails and killing trees. I haven't had any experience with this personally. If the tree died suddenly herbicide may be responsible. If gradually, probably not. I couldn't say if that is a good price either to test the foliage for the presence of herbicide but it sounds ridiculous to me. I'm no lawyer, but it doesn't sound like you have much of a case. You could hire a consulting arborist to exam the tree and see if they can determine the cause of death. If they don't give you much to go on you would probably be better to just cut it down. It sounds like there is more going on here than can probably be explained in this forum. A consulting arborist on site might be able to tell you a lot.
Good luck.
Good luck.
Ed Roland
Addicted to ArboristSite
We attach quite a bit of copper to trees installing lightning protection as well as a large copper bar at the base of the tree for a ground. If you feel he killed your tree try another avenue. Look for drill/bore holes in the trunk where he may have injected an herbicide. When the tree comes down look at a cross section of the tree directly above the holes, if any, for phytotoxicity.
NEK VT
ArboristSite Operative
Fix Him
Sounds Like You Should Tune His Car Up For Him.... Or Tune Him Up In A Place Where Their Are Not Witnesses To Get U For Assult.
Sounds Like You Should Tune His Car Up For Him.... Or Tune Him Up In A Place Where Their Are Not Witnesses To Get U For Assult.
habanero
ArboristSite Guru
$1000 bucks may be a little high for herbicide testing plant tissue, but not terribly so. It's not a simple test-complicated sample prep and needs very expensive instrumentation (need a mass spec to get down to the concentration range you're likely to see). I've analyzed pesticides in soil for a couple researchers, but never in plant tissue and not under these circumstances (I'm an analytical chemist, by the way).
When I was working at the Soil and Plant Analysis lab at Iowa State, we had a couple people come to us wanting these types of tests to see if somebody sabotaged their lawn with Roundup. At that point we didn't have the instrumentation, but everybody we talked to said it'd be a waste of time anyway unless you can get the samples almost immediately after it was applied.
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