Many of you were familiar with the large, old, double-trunked chestnut oak in my front yard. (Many years ago, it used to have three trunks.) My friend, Kurt Mohr, of Bartlett Tree, has been working with me for years to save the old tree, and he really did a great job of extending my old friend’s life. Finally, though, I realized it was a losing battle and decided to let the tree die an honorable death. Kurt told me that, when the smallest of the two trunks--the one closest to the house—dies, I’d have to remove the tree because the tree would become unbalanced and could fall easily during a big storm.
On the day of the removal (a big event—the street had to be blocked and removal required a crane), I said goodbye to my old friend and stayed inside during much of the removal process. The excellent, very professional crew cut the trunk as close to the ground as possible.
When they were finished, there was a big hole, so I had the guys move the giant Italian terra cotta pot up onto the stump. The pot used to stand on the house side of the tree. Now, planted with a giant red banana, the hole is filled nicely and I hardly remember the tree was there. All the shrubs and trees in the front yard have filled in beautifully and set great numbers of buds for next Spring. Everything turned out okay, in the end.
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