My 40+ year old fan palm is too close to my house and will soon be hitting my gutters. The fans are already above roof-level, but the trunk is about a foot away from hitting the gutters. I don't want to lose the tree, but I can't lose my gutters. Is it possible to bend the tree away from the gutters? I was thinking of using a come-a-along, with a chain around the tree and the other end bolted into the wall of the shed that is about 10 feet away from the tree. Will this work? Any better ideas?
Your method of a chain and come-a-long could work, however! This method should have been started before the problem was eminant. This would have produced a natural curved look to the trunk without putting unnessesary strain on the existing trunk. Be careful with chain contact with the trunk, as is will likely cut into the wood once pressure is applied. A padded or cushioned buffer with the chain will definately help. Also small increments in adjustments with tension may be best started before serious problems arise. Too much tension could present problems. Any pics you could post may help further. Cheers, LPN.
