DH and I are having a difference of opinion because of one of the big trees in our yard. When we bought the house; the trees were one thing that really attracted us to the property. The house was brand new but the builder had taken pains to leave the mature trees in tact. Within a year it was clear the pine trees that bordered one side of the property were dying. And quickly! One came down on the garage during a blizzard; fortunately it caused no damage to the house.
So the problem tree now is the silver maple that shades the front yard. The property came with 3 silver maples. 2 are full grown and about 25 years old according to the Arborist who has come to look at it several times. We had the trees pruned the first year we were here. When I take my kids outside; I generally stay under the big silver maple in the backyard. It is significantly cooler under the tree!! The tree in the back has always looked a bit healthier. Probably because we have a septic system and it gets some water from that. Our property is extremely sandy! So water and nutrients run right out of it. The Arborist has fertilized our trees in the past and recommended we fertilize ourselves regularly. I won't water because we are on a well. That tree in the front yard shades the west facing side of my home. It gets very hot here and when the leaves are down that side of the house heats right up. So I really have appreciated that tree!! I try to use energy saving measures; like room darkening curtains. But even the Arborist said that the energy savings for a home shaded by trees is significant. You can't replace that overnight or even in a few years.
There are large ants nesting in there too. We still have not found the bottom of the rot and you can see it goes upwards as well. There is another limb that has some rot; but it's not in a position where it is a danger to our house. This one is. Because silver maples have multiple trunks; they are more prone to splitting. Or so I've read. This rot affects about 1/4 of the tree; the picture doesn't give a good perspective of the size of it. The Arborist said that big limbs like this can look healthy but be hollow inside and come down in a storm; even though they look ok. This tree does look healthy enough; even if the leaves are thinner on it.
So it's looking like we don't have any other option but to remove it. Removing this big section of the tree would only buy us a few years before that even larger wound is rotting. I'm not happy. Not happy at all!!
DH has gotten some quotes and negotiated the charge down to a less painful amount by only having the actual cutting down done by a tree company. The one with the best quote said they will cut the larger pieces down into a size that we can split for our wood stove; but the rest of the cleanup is on DH. That will leave the stump (which I'm fine with) and all the branches and leaves too. That will likely cover the front yard. I would rather wait until the leaves come down so we can get the shade for the rest of the summer and we won't have tons of green leaves (and green limbs!) to deal with. DH wants it down NOW. The Arborist was not that concerned about the tree falling. I'm not. But this is DH's style. Full steam ahead. I'm the one who needs to research all options (I really wanted to save the tree!!) and process it before I make any decisions. I cried when they pruned the trees because of how much this other tree company took. Granted I was pregnant and hormonal and I found a birds nest in the yard. But I love these trees. They make the yard so pleasant. When I sit out under them I feel content. It's mostly quiet out here. I love it. I'm still working on accepting the need to lose this one.
DH WILL be planting us a new tree next spring. Then I just have to be patient for 15-20 years for it to be big enough to shade the front of the house again.
So the problem tree now is the silver maple that shades the front yard. The property came with 3 silver maples. 2 are full grown and about 25 years old according to the Arborist who has come to look at it several times. We had the trees pruned the first year we were here. When I take my kids outside; I generally stay under the big silver maple in the backyard. It is significantly cooler under the tree!! The tree in the back has always looked a bit healthier. Probably because we have a septic system and it gets some water from that. Our property is extremely sandy! So water and nutrients run right out of it. The Arborist has fertilized our trees in the past and recommended we fertilize ourselves regularly. I won't water because we are on a well. That tree in the front yard shades the west facing side of my home. It gets very hot here and when the leaves are down that side of the house heats right up. So I really have appreciated that tree!! I try to use energy saving measures; like room darkening curtains. But even the Arborist said that the energy savings for a home shaded by trees is significant. You can't replace that overnight or even in a few years.
There are large ants nesting in there too. We still have not found the bottom of the rot and you can see it goes upwards as well. There is another limb that has some rot; but it's not in a position where it is a danger to our house. This one is. Because silver maples have multiple trunks; they are more prone to splitting. Or so I've read. This rot affects about 1/4 of the tree; the picture doesn't give a good perspective of the size of it. The Arborist said that big limbs like this can look healthy but be hollow inside and come down in a storm; even though they look ok. This tree does look healthy enough; even if the leaves are thinner on it.
So it's looking like we don't have any other option but to remove it. Removing this big section of the tree would only buy us a few years before that even larger wound is rotting. I'm not happy. Not happy at all!!
DH has gotten some quotes and negotiated the charge down to a less painful amount by only having the actual cutting down done by a tree company. The one with the best quote said they will cut the larger pieces down into a size that we can split for our wood stove; but the rest of the cleanup is on DH. That will leave the stump (which I'm fine with) and all the branches and leaves too. That will likely cover the front yard. I would rather wait until the leaves come down so we can get the shade for the rest of the summer and we won't have tons of green leaves (and green limbs!) to deal with. DH wants it down NOW. The Arborist was not that concerned about the tree falling. I'm not. But this is DH's style. Full steam ahead. I'm the one who needs to research all options (I really wanted to save the tree!!) and process it before I make any decisions. I cried when they pruned the trees because of how much this other tree company took. Granted I was pregnant and hormonal and I found a birds nest in the yard. But I love these trees. They make the yard so pleasant. When I sit out under them I feel content. It's mostly quiet out here. I love it. I'm still working on accepting the need to lose this one.
DH WILL be planting us a new tree next spring. Then I just have to be patient for 15-20 years for it to be big enough to shade the front of the house again.