Willow Tree near my house - what are your thoughts

[amr40509]

Hello,

I have a willow tree (I guess the base at 24" diameter) fairly close to my house that I've been doing battle with for the past few years. Every year I trim it back away from the roof...and it keeps trying to sneek over there.

Please have a look at it:

http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y27/Photoview/

The main trunk is fairly straight and only really had one high limb that juts out over my house.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y27/Photoview/P1000107.jpg?t=1285159180

The trunk does fork pretty low

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y27/Photoview/P1000108.jpg?t=1285159180

and comes out in the direction of my/my neighbor's houses

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y27/Photoview/P1000110.jpg?t=1285159180

This tree seems pretty hardy, we had the epic Kentucky ice storm of 2009 here and it did pretty well. Many of the top branches were actually bent all the way to the deck, but it only lost a few good sized limbs.

My question(s) are:

If I were to take off the whole fork on the house side down low, do you think this would kill the rest of the tree?

What time of the year is a good for a large trimming of a Willow in Kentucky? It just dropped leaves about 3 days ago (note they are still on my deck).

My thinking is that I'm a youngish (29) guy in good shape who has been can climb a tree easily enough. I've been cutting firewood and felling trees for firewood most of my life. And I'm generally fairly sensible. I think that I can climb this, tie off to the main trunk up high, and do a good trim on this a little at a time by roping each little piece of limb to the main trunk so it swings away from the house as I cut it.

Willow seems to be pretty easy to cut, so I'm thinking a good hand saw might be alright - what hand saws do you suggest? I have a MS361 and an 026....but think they would do more harm than good up in a tree at their size. I'm not opposed to buying a mid priced ($300-400) climbing saw also if it would make this a lot easier. I also already do have a 21' pole saw that I use for general pruning normally (I get up on the roof and use the pole saw to keep the limbs away).

 

[Loraxguy]

willow

A weak limb tree near all those targets I would remove the tree and hire a professional to do the work. They have the knowledge and insurance to cover
any problems that might happen. As a old guy have been there thinking he could but really couldn't it just isn't worth-----

 

[amr40509]

A weak limb tree near all those targets I would remove the tree and hire a professional to do the work. They have the knowledge and insurance to cover
any problems that might happen. As a old guy have been there thinking he could but really couldn't it just isn't worth-----

While it is a weak limbed tree, I'm really not overly interested in the idea of taking it all down. I guess you can call it a calculated risk, but I do have homeowners insurance, so if it got really bad (as in the whole tree coming down)....it is what it is. That tree really does make the deck nice (except when it drops its leaves.)

I'm more curious about the option of taking out the 'house' side of it and removing some of that risk.

I hadn't mentioned it before, but that little shed is 'expendable' - I think I only paid about a grand for it and there isn't anything in there that I'd be overly upset about having a tree end up on.

 

[S Mc]

AMR, taking into consideration the size these trees can achieve both in girth and height, Lorax is being realistic in his recommendation to get rid of the tree while it is young.

Your acceptance of its presence for the benefits it is giving you is understandable as well. But this acceptance must take into consideration how fast this tree will grow and its constant efforts. (Reference your statement about trimming it away from the house and it keeps growing back...well, of course, it does.) It is good that the shed is "expendable".

Removing a large limb on a tree is never a good idea (sometimes unavoidable, but not good). Would it survive it? Probably. But you would be opening up the trunk and basal area to the potential for wood decay pathogens. Willows are not good compartmentalizers, their strategy is to outgrow pathogens rather than to seal them off. And that only works for so long.

You will also be creating an imbalanced tree.

MS361 and 026 are not handsaws. Climbing with a chain saw and removing limbs over structures is a far cry from felling trees and cutting up firewood. I'm not saying you can't do this yourself, because I have no idea as to your skill level. But many people have been seriously injured or killed trying to do projects like these themselves. So if you tackle it yourself, stay well within your comfort zone and take off small pieces at a time, preferrably with a true handsaw or as you mentioned, your pole saw.

Sylvia

 

[derwoodii]

Your pictures show a nice tree. Shame you don't like it. If you want to prune her get a qualified or skilled bloke in, be better for tree health n maybe yours. If you want sox it, best kill of the root system 1st drill n fill herbicide MCPA Diacamba works a treat with Willows or it will forever regrow from stump and surface roots. Timing for poison is best in spring so leave her till then. Remember to get a suitable replacement tree to plant when the jobs done eh.

 

[tawilson]

Pretty hard to kill a willow.

 

[xtm]

Pretty hard to kill a willow.

That's an understatement!

JMO, but it's just a matter of time before that tree drops a big limb on your house - willows should never be allowed to grow near a house or power line.

Willows are full of water and carry a lot of stored energy in those stately sweeping limbs....and this makes them quite unpredictable when limbing and felling. They will often twist and "barberchair" - and fall right where you are standing!

I've shown this pic on here before - some real "pros" at work on a willow next door (please make note of the ladder on the slick blanket on the roof; the climbing harness with no rope attached; the head-scratching dufus below; etc.):

They tried to anticipate the falling direction of the limb overhanging the motorhome, and even assisted by pulling it with a rope - but the willow outsmarted 'em. Check out the top-to-bottom crack in the $1100 windshield:

xtm

 

[amr40509]

See here in Kentucky they'd still have the last laugh - here we have no fault windshield repair, you can break it however you want to, and even if you only have liability coverage, the insurance has to replace it with $0 deductible and can't hold it against you. Nice little state law quirk.

 

[treeclimber101]

Wow thats just got bad idea written all over it, thats a 30,000 .00 ladder there hope that tree was a money tree ..

 

[xtm]

See here in Kentucky they'd still have the last laugh - here we have no fault windshield repair, you can break it however you want to, and even if you only have liability coverage, the insurance has to replace it with $0 deductible and can't hold it against you. Nice little state law quirk.

Hope you don't think that "quirk" is free....

Your vehicle ins. would be cheaper if that wasn't automatically written into each policy...

BTW, those were pros up there on that motorhome - not the homeowner.

xtm

 

[treeclimber101]

Hope you don't think that "quirk" is free....

Your vehicle ins. would be cheaper if that wasn't automatically written into each policy...

BTW, those were pros up there on that motorhome - not the homeowner.

xtm

If there pros than I could make a mint there , thats some backwoods #### there working on the roof of the double wide ...

 

[amr40509]

Hope you don't think that "quirk" is free....

Your vehicle ins. would be cheaper if that wasn't automatically written into each policy...

BTW, those were pros up there on that motorhome - not the homeowner.

xtm

It is kind of a nice warning though, when you see someone with a cracked windshield in KY...you know they don't have any insurance and you should keep your distance.

AH, when you had the "pros" in quotes earlier I thought you were being sarcastic, wow.... I think I'd have to SLIGHTLY question some hired pros that came to my house and used a RV as a lift! Wonder if the $#!++&^ was full???