Tree leaning

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Wiluven

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First time home owner, no idea what I'm doing...

In last nights severe wind/rain storm one of my big tree's has been blown over a bit. It's still in the ground with one side lifted up but also seems to be resting on the tree next to it and the house.

I'd hate to remove the thing - it's a monster of a tree. The last picture was taken before it was 'leaned over'.

Can it be saved?

If it can, what can I expect to pay to have the top lopped off, winched back into place, and staked?

If not, how much can i expect to pay to have it removed?

Thanks! :(
 
You will probably get a more definitive answer from some of the more knowledgeable arborists here, but I think it could be saved. It seems small enough were it could be up-righted and guyed. The big problem I see your soil structure may be a problem. Any time you get excessive rain and the soil becomes saturated it weakens the trees ability to support itself. But that tree isnt that large that it should be a problem. Maybe if you get it up right and use some anchor bolts in your wall along with one in the ground it may support the tree long enough to get the roots to regain support strength but the best place to get the answer is have an expert come look at it.

Tree Guying

Hard to tell from the pictures but you may have other issues with that tree. If you decide to remove it I would think it would not run more then a 400-500 for a tree that size, if even that much.

Good luck keep us updated.
 
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I appreciate your response and will wait for others as well....

Any advice on who the right people to contact are? I've called two guys out but they are more of a trimming service and just want to cut it down.
 
It looks like you will have to get some work done on the wall as your first priority.
attachment.php

If you dismantle some of the wall, get the treework done (wether it is preservation or removal), while the wall is down. It will be easier and cheaper when the wall is down. You will probably find the roots on the uplifted side of the tree have been damaged when either the wall was built or some activity on the other side of the wall. Try to avoid doing too much more damage when you rebuild the wall.
After having another look at the tree, which I think is a Callistemon viminalis, I would consider removal. It is not a happy tree. The codominance, which in this species always include bark after a time, the proximity of the house and wall, its current condition and its potential size all tell me that this is the wrong place for that tree.
Really, get the wall seen to!
 
It looks like you will have to get some work done on the wall as your first priority.
attachment.php

If you dismantle some of the wall, get the treework done (wether it is preservation or removal), while the wall is down. It will be easier and cheaper when the wall is down. You will probably find the roots on the uplifted side of the tree have been damaged when either the wall was built or some activity on the other side of the wall. Try to avoid doing too much more damage when you rebuild the wall.
After having another look at the tree, which I think is a Callistemon viminalis, I would consider removal. It is not a happy tree. The codominance, which in this species always include bark after a time, the proximity of the house and wall, its current condition and its potential size all tell me that this is the wrong place for that tree.
Really, get the wall seen to!


I would have to agree with you Eden.. Included bark is when 2 or more surfaces of bark grow against each other and cause pressure to build in the union. Besides that you can see how much rot is present in the flush cut branch at 6' height. Though when the tree has good vitality this would be compartmentalized, in this shape especially in this location I second the opinion- Removal is best.

I really don't see an adequate anchor point to guy this tree up, unless you could install the guy anchor in your neighbors back yard... If you could guy it up, I doubt you could ever remove the support system, as the tree is unlikely to grow new buttress roots that will hold it against future failure.

Also, the trunk on this tree is lacking any root flare- It looks as though the Lava rock has been piled excessively high against the trunk or the tree was planted too deeply in the first place-

When I was in Pinetop, AZ a removal of this size would have cost $300, the stump about $65-$80 ground out.

Good luck-

:chainsawguy:
 
It looks like you will have to get some work done on the wall as your first priority.
attachment.php

If you dismantle some of the wall, get the treework done (wether it is preservation or removal), while the wall is down. It will be easier and cheaper when the wall is down. You will probably find the roots on the uplifted side of the tree have been damaged when either the wall was built or some activity on the other side of the wall. Try to avoid doing too much more damage when you rebuild the wall.
After having another look at the tree, which I think is a Callistemon viminalis, I would consider removal. It is not a happy tree. The codominance, which in this species always include bark after a time, the proximity of the house and wall, its current condition and its potential size all tell me that this is the wrong place for that tree.
Really, get the wall seen to!

:agree2:

With EdenT
Can't really see the whole tree height wise, $600-700 normally for my crew to do.
 
Beautiful yard, and a nice tree. WAS a nice tree. :(
looks like that root system is fractured, and the tree should go, I've seen too many die slow after that kind of upheaval.
guying, and pruning might help, but I doubt it.

always worth trying though if not affordable, or you really like the tree for sentimental reasons. but in the end.............mo money, mo money.

remove and replace, my 2 cents.
 
Leaner

I agree with the last four posts removal would be in your best interest. From the pics posted looks like a lot of tight crotches and some rot and it looks like the weight of the wall is counter balancing the tree, as I have done some masonry work and have seen it before. The reason for the step crack that was not in your nice yard shot.
You can try to save it but it would be costly i.e. cabling and/or bracing for the crotches that needs to be maintained, the guy lines, and root feeding to encourage new growth. I think in the long run it will be all for not. Willows are not worth that kind of money or time.
 
Thank you everyone for your comments and advice. I'm going to schedule someone to come out and remove it tomorrow :( Poor tree...

As for the crack in the wall - that was from a neighbors tree years ago. The tree snapped and hit the wall and broke loose the concrete grout or whatever you call it.

Definitely book marking this site - I am a fan of you folks :)
 
I also agree that removal and replanting is probably the best option. You could have the willow removed and a better specimen of a tree planted, probably for less than the cost of reduction and guying and two years care.

If you're dead set on saving it, and willing to pay for ongoing care, then having a good anchor point for the guy line looks to me like the biggest problem. It would need significant reduction, probable cabling of the included bark, pulled back into position and guyed, root flare excavaton done, then pruned annually for several years to manage the reduction cuts, as well as root re-growth monitored.

And then you could still need to pay for removal in a few years.

Here's a pic of a smallish uprooted apple I righted and guyed last summer. I'll see it again in early spring, and check to see how much it's supporting itself, and how much the guy lines are carrying.

uprootedapplefixed.jpg
 
leaning tree

It looks like the tree in some of the photo's I see no root flare. Perhaps the root zone is now has had some fill put over it? Once the Cert. Arbor I would have him concentrate on the root zone. Just perhaps there's not much there and the tree is not worth saving. Any die back in the crown of the tree?
 
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