In Seattle you’ll often see bumperstickers saying Retree Ballard. During the early pioneer days, Ballard was its own city, and it grew fast. The area was clearcut, whether to cut to build homes in Ballard or build “Shingletown” when downtown Seattle was being rejuvenated, all the old trees went fast.
Where's Douglas? Something's Missing!
Now, an incorporated part of Seattle city, Ballard continues to be a bit sparse on the trees. Residents, city programs, and environmental groups have worked together to add trees back into the landscape, which is fantastic. What isn’t so fantastic is when we see some of the big, older trees decline and or get chopped down.
A couple of years ago, I began watching the apical dieback on a big Douglas Fir that made up a significant part of my view from my front door. About a year ago, I wrote a post about this tree in a post commenting on the number of large Douglas Firs that had begun significant tip dieback in the prior year.
Since I noticed the dieback, I have wondered what would happen to these trees. One arborist told me he’d seen some of this dieback correct itself over time as the tree released the dieback and a new tip leader would take over. Others weren’t as optimistic. On Friday, while I was out with clients, my husband heard the chainsaws. Our neighborhood Douglas Fir wasn’t going to get a chance to develop a new leader, which I’ve actually thought might be happening. The tree was taken down.
I will say I’m a bit relieved that the dead top was removed. I’d nicknamed it “the javelin of death” and was worried in one of our windy, snowy, icy storms it might detatch from the tree and impale an unsuspecting grocery shopper. Still, it’s always sad to see a tree go. My scientific horticultural side was really curious to see if the tree would recover from the tip dieback by forming a new leader. Truly, it looked like one of the living top branches was forming more of a vertical growth pattern than its prior horizontal form. But, I defer to the professionals, and I’m going to assume the arborist on this job is certified. I don’t really know. All I do know is these pictures tell a story of loss:
Snowy in January '07 Tree Shows No Tip Dieback to the Naked Eye
January 2008 Significant Tip Dieback Visible to Naked Eye
February 2009 Chainsaw Operator in Crane Limbs Up Tree
February 2009 Limbed up like a Palm Tree
Arborist Sawing Off Trunk, Top Down
Valentines 2009 -- The View without the Tree
Tags: apical dominance, arboriculture, arborist, ballard, douglas fir, seattle, tree removal
That is sad. You really documented it well. What causes the dieback? I am very afraid for our Pt. Orford cedar, which has had a different type of dieback due to severe root damage (neighbors put in a patio), and now the threat of phytopthera (sp?) virus is more significant. If we lose the tree, I don’t know if I can live in this house anymore. My parents lost two Doug firs to the Channukah storm the other year – they are pretty risky near houses/power lines sometimes because I guess their root system (unlike a cedar’s) is more shallow and less far-reaching. Sorry your view was ruined! Most people think trees spoil their view of something else, but gardeners feel differently, huh?
Karen, Read the link to the earlier post on this subject. Link is in paragraph 3. That’s what I was told. Most arborists were leaning toward this tip dieback coming from cumulative drought damage. Though other theories were also brought up like root rot.
Very unfortunate the tree wasn’t given a chance to heal. Did you ever find out why the property owners opted to chop it down?
I haven’t spoken to the owners, and I doubt I will. If I’d been home while the arborists were here, I would have asked. I’ve never met (or seen) the house occupants, so I don’t know that I’ll ever find out.
Melanthia – trees don’t “heal” per se though they can compartmentalize wounds. Maybe this should be the topic for my next guest blog post! Robin – I know this tree but think that pruning is outrageous! Did they do that in one day or did they “palm tree” prune it and let it sit for a bit??
I live in Ballard and my guess as to the persistence of its relative treelessness is the tiny size of the lots. There’s usually not enough room for a large tree anywhere: not in the front yard, nor side yard, nor back yard. That said, there are a few large trees in the neighborhood.
About 4 years ago a neighbor removed her huge pine (I’m not sure exactly what it was). The rumor was the city had said it had a disease. It didn’t have dieback. It’s sorely missed from my view.
The house directly behind ours has two huge trees that both must be 70-100′ tall. One is a fairly wind-torn Douglas Fir, and the other is (amazingly enough on the West Coast) a Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera, Thomas Jefferson’s favorite tree). The house is a neglected rental and my fear is it may eventually be torn down and the trees removed. The Tulip makes a wonderful rustling sound in the fall.
We share a large Cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis?) with our neighbor in the front yard. If we lose that, we’re moving! The “Christmas tree” was one of the reasons we picked the house.
Hey Brian- if you have any questions about your tree, call a qualified certified arborist! They’ll be able to tell you whether or not your tree is healthy, diseased, worth saving … whatever your concern.
Also FWIW, if you (or your neighbor) are considering action on a tree that shares a property line (pruning, removal, etc.) the consent of both property owners is needed prior to action. Good luck!