I have a 70-80 ft DF (Pseudotsuga Menziesii) in my yard in the Okanagan on the hillside above Okanagan Lake. This was previously a pine habitat prior to being cleared for housing. I managed to save the ONE DF in the neighborhood from the chainsaw guys. It is virtually the only real tree left around here and does provide some nice shade for my porch. This tree/trunk was formerly shaded from the HOT Okanagan SUN[temps mid 90's to 100 in July/Aug] by quite a few of the 20-30 ft pines but now stands alone. On moving in, I realized the tree had some damage: there is a vertical crack in the bark about 6 ft long which has opened up about 1-2" wide, apparently right down to the cambium. The crack has been oozing sap for 4 years that I know of and constantly attracts ants to the tree. Otherwise, the tree seems healthy in spite of the land graders trying their best to mess with the ground level around the tree. After they were done, I dug a tree well to get rid of the overburden/soil they had piled around the tree. My question is: should I try to remedy this damage somehow (various websites describe howto cut back the damaged bark - IT IS low, on the SUNNY SIDE !) or should I "leave well enough alone" ? My 1st Q here- I hope this is the right forum AS
Don't mess with the crack, do think about the fill over the roots - a well around the trunk is not adequate. If there is fill beyond the immediate vicinity of the trunk that could easily kill the tree. If your house was built over a large percentage of its roots, that could kill the tree even if no cutting or filling was involved. The tree won't necessarily fail as a result of the construction, there are certainly many other instances of trees in similar circumstances continuing on. But having a large tree come down on your house can ruin your whole day. If you can possibly get any certified arborists or other apparently qualified parties to come out and view the situation, then do so. After we moved in here we had a western hemlock keep a live (albeit weak-looking, heavily coning) top for quite some years - before it blew into the neighbor's carport. Examination of the base of the carcass revealed that it had been living under as much as a foot of compacted fill soil. Most of the wood below the break was sodden and soft, almost cheesy. A strip of live cambium about an inch wide had been maintaining a connection between the roots and the entire top.
>>Don't mess with the crack, do think about the fill over the roots - a well around the trunk is not adequate. If there is fill beyond the immediate vicinity of the trunk that could easily kill the tree. If your house was built over a large percentage of its roots, that could kill the tree even if no cutting or filling was involved<< Ok, I'll leave "the crack" alone..It just looks 'painful'..the tree oozing sap like that-like an open wound with the insects travelling through. As far as the back fill goes: Picture a 45 degree slope with the Fir growing on it. They pushed fill back down the hill until it covered the original base of the tree by 4+ feet on the 'high' side. The majority of the downhill side of the tree root area was pretty well on (45 degree)grade. This was the Summer of 2003. Within a few months, we dug out the fill around the tree-out about 6ft in diameter- to "original grade", so what we've had for 7 years now is: the lower side..GOOD (natural grade) and the upper half, in the 'well': those roots are under 4-5 ft of crappy fill soil-nothing I can do about that part. Like I said, the pine needle covered forest floor that used to exist is long gone. We have allowed the original Oregon Grape (small ones were left after grading) to flourish on the hill below the base of the tree and added irrigation (we get little rain here on the 'desert' side of the Coast Range mountains) so other than the crack, the tree looks healthy enough. >>Arborist<< I will find one locally and see what he says. thanks, Alan
Can you post a photo of the crack? I wouldn't recommend doing anything with the crack, but it could be worth monitoring. If it is just torn away bark, maybe a scar from an excavator clearing the land, and just 2" wide, it should be fine. If you see a crack going deep into the wood below, that might be cause for further concern... I agree with Ron, try to remove as much of the fill over the root area as possible back to the original grade. Do this VERY carefully, ensuring you don't cause damage to root surfaces in the process. Monitor the top of the tree for chlorosis and excessive cone crop.
Just missed your last post.... One thing to consider: On this tree the most important structural roots will be on the upslope side. If root rot starts in that area because of the excessive fill there, it could be bad news if something valuable is in the fall zone of the tree.
As you see from the pictures, I can't really do anything with the fill on the 'high side' of the tree. Although my house isn't sitting on top of the roots, the "fill" is what is holding my house/foundation in place. As far as excessive cone crop..since this is the ONLY D-F around here, its hard to gauge how many cones 'should' be there. There ARE plenty each season..'Chlorosis' well there is plenty of new bright green growth and cones each Spring (now)..never do see any yellowing..the Bright green growth eventually takes on the 'plain ol' green over time. Also, they're now aerial spraying BTK in the area for the D-F tussock moth.. Here are a few of pics of the crack..Outwardly, it really hasn't changed much over the 6 years but inside, I dont know. Can anyone recommend an arborist in the Kelowna BC area ? Alan
The fill soil behind it is right on top of the tree, and there is no sign of anything having been done to assure that the fill stays in place over the years - I don't even see any erosion netting. I'd want to get this material secured in place just to assure the safety of the site, apart from trying to retain the tree. It looks like there is enough horizontal distance to install a vertical wall that pulls the soil back away from the tree for some distance. It wouldn't be cheap. But the results of having the fill take off during a rainy winter or the spring melting of an exceptional snowfall might not be cheap either.
We have had rain/serious snow and combinations of the two over the 6 years. The most crud that falls into the "well" amounts to roughly a wheelbarrow full, every odd winter or two. Whats there forming the hillside isn't just a load of soil dumped/graded on the hillside. Beneath what is probably the worlds worst soil, all along the hillside is crushed/compacted 6-12" local broken rock, placed in 2' lifts, which was pounded into place with either a "drive on" type vibrating sheepsfoot compactor or an excavator mounted "vibrating/compactor head". Its it very or stable. All the homes/lots along this hillside (100 or more) are built up this way. What I plan to do is to clean out the 'well' (6' dia) and line the inside with curved corrugated "tin roof" material ('ribs' vertical) on the uphill side. This will be roughly 3 ft from the trunk of the tree and against the bank. [Picture a piece of 6 ft dia corrugated culvert, sitting on end, around the tree]. I'll tie it into the 'bank' behind the tree by pounding long metal rods thru the steel and welding large washers on the ends. After the steel is in place, I'm going to cut some 3-4" holes in it and plant some type of 'runner'/ ivy or creeper in them and let it take over the steel and above along the existing bank. The roots/runners should suffice to hold things together. The Virginia creeper I have on the lower end of the hill is voracious..as I say, only about a wheelbarrows worth of fill drops into the hole per year so I'm not too concerned about that. I'll be calling two or three local arborists tomorrow and see who can come and have a look at the tree. Alan
Good idea to have an arborist come look at it. I think there is a company around Kelowna called ArborTech. Make sure anyone doing any consulting for you is, at minimum, ISA certified. Definitely a tough call with all the grade adjustment around the tree. In the first picture the lean looks funny. It doesn't look corrected. Have you noticed any recent lean, or has it been like that since you've been there? It could also be just the angle the picture was taken at.
The 'lean' is the same..hasnt changed in 6 yrs..sort of a curve from the bottom to about halfway up, then straight. Thanks for the ArborTech info..will call 'em. Alan
So in other words the soil behind the tree is, in fact, moving down the hill - as can be seen by the erosion channels on the surface of it. Taking steps to keep soil off the bark is worthwhile. Building a tree well there will not help the problem of half the root system having been buried by a large mass of soil. "Many tree wells have been installed by individuals with good intentions but almost always the tree dies" --Carl E. Whitcomb, Establishment and Maintenance of Landscape Plants (1991 revised edition, Lacebark Inc., Stillwater)
Well, short of moving my house and digging out the 4-6 ft of fill over the uphill side of the tree root system, thats all I can do. It's worked "as is" for 6 years so far.
The Bartlett/Arbor-Tech ISA arborist came by today and looked at the tree. He says it's doing well and the bark is expanding well and filling in as the tree grows. He doesn't see any sign of damage or poor health due to the uphill side of the roots being "buried" for the last 6 years. He says the lean (which also hasn't changed in the 6 yrs) is made up for by the tree accelerating the growth on the downhill side of the lean. A look from far back does show the tree has "centered" itself in the top half. Actually, after looking at pictures from 6 years ago when the pines were all removed from the hillside, the canopy is in markedly better condition (I'm guessing thats due to the irrigation its been getting) This side of Okanagan Lake is much like desert..little rain. Anyway, he says to keep a close eye on the base of the tree in case it starts to shrink back but so far, its doing great in that aspect. Thank you all for your input Alan
