An Arlington Tree Removal with a Surprise Inside
Arlington has a lot of overhead utility lines: power, telephone, cable. This is different from suburbs west of Arlington, where such lines tend to be underground. So we run into a lot of mature trees that are involved with these aerial utility lines, which can be an issue when performing an Arlington tree removal.
One particular case comes to mind where just such a tree needed to be removed. We sounded the tree and determined that it was hollow. It was leaning over the street and over some power lines.
We sounded this particular tree using the old-fashioned rubber mallet method and determined that it was quite hollow and needed to come down. Because of the issue with the power lines, we had to get in touch with Dominion Power, because they own the lines upon which the tree encroached. We were on site with Dominion Power while they created their safe radius around their utility lines. Since Dominion Power is not always willing to remove debris, we removed the debris while they created the radius. Once the tree is a safe distance, which is a 10 foot radius away from those lines, then we finished the removal.
When we finally removed the trunk of the tree, we found that the cavity, the hollow area, was large enough for three men to stand inside it! The only thing holding the tree up was a 2" band of bark around it, but obviously that's a formula for trouble. The homeowner got lucky in that it didn't do damage to the surrounding area and his property.
The reason the tree experienced this condition, the reason for the root cavity in the first place was that some 40 years before we removed it, the tree was back-filled about four feet up the trunk of the tree, meaning that the roots were covered by soil and could not get sufficient oxygen. They built a wall in front of their house to make some space for a walkway. The terrain had a very steep pitch, as a lot of Arlington homes have, and they basically buried this tree in their efforts to overcome the steepness of the grade. This decision led to the creation of a massive cavity over time that not only killed the tree but also created a danger to the surrounding environment.
When a tree is in the beginning of its life, there is a natural taper at the bottom where the roots come out, which we call "the zone of rapid taper" or "the root flare". If something gets built around that tree, there may need to be grade changes or back-fill that goes around the tree, but you have to be careful how you do it because the process of grading is what buries the tree. Obviously, you cannot move the tree up as you move the grade up, so the root flare ends up getting covered. This leads to root death in most cases unless it is done in such a way that the critical root zone can still "breathe". Roots have to respire. So if you back-fill around a tree, you have to use arable fill or something else that allows the root zone to breathe and not die.
In this case, the deep root zone died, and the cavity of decaying wood spread right up the trunk of the tree. This created a big "cave" inside the trunk of the tree.
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More About Tree Services in Arlington, Virginia
Closing a Street For a Tree Removal — Sometimes, the only safe way to remove a tree is to close the street. Know the rules and regulations!
Improper Pruning Practices in Arlington — If he had remained sitting there another half hour, he would surely have been killed instantly.
Invasive Weeds — Recently, while working on a tree removal project in Arlington, Virginia, I bumped into a technician from the Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation named Karsten Ziemann.
Over the House Removals — We sometimes encounter situations when it is necessary to bring in a crane.
Pruning Arlington Tulip Poplars — Our larger, more notable tree pruning actions in Arlington have been with tulip poplars.
Review of Pro Arbor Tree Service in Arlington, VA — I would highly recommend them to all our neighbors and friends. If you have the opportunity to do some cost comparisons, they may save the association some money too.
Sounding Trees — There are different ways to sound a tree. The old-fashioned way is to use a rubber mallet.
Tree Pruning Arlington, VA — The older and larger a tree, the less ability that it has to recover from over-pruning or poor pruning cuts.
Tree Removal Arlington, Virginia — If you have to remove a tree in Arlington, call Pro Arbor.
Tree Removal Surprise — When we removed the trunk of the tree, we found a hollow area large enough for three men to stand inside it!
Tree Removal Tale — There was an Arlington tree removal where we removed two red oaks and a white oak from a backyard.
Tulip Poplar Tree Removals in Arlington — Pro Arbor has been contracted to remove some large Tulip Poplar trees from the Washington Golf and Country Club in Arlington, VA.
Towns That Pro Arbor Serves:
Tree Removal Alexandria Arlington Tree Removal Tree Pruning Ashburn Fairfax Tree Removal Great Falls, VA Tree Trimming and Removal Tree Pruning in Lake Ridge Tree Care Manassas McLean, VA Tree Cutting and Removal Tree Service Montclair Northern VA Tree Service Tree Pruning Reston Tree Removal in Vienna Tree Removal Woodbridge
