Do you worry about trees?

Callistemon21

Mumi

Yes I worry that there are too few trees in this country. They help to regulate our planet's health and filter out pollutants. I'm starting to think I'd rather see trees than people - although this might be just that I'm feeling depressed from recent news.

The problem is that some trees are in the wrong place.

Perhaps if someone has a tree chopped down for any reason than disease, the cost should include enough to plant another five somewhere more suitable.

If there were more trees along riverbanks it could help alleviate flooding.

my TPO'd trees predate the building of the houses. I have had permission to remove 6 over the time we have lived here and every time I have been required to replace the trees (4 oaks, a wild cherry and a HUGE apple tree) with more suitable species from a list I was given to choose from

rowyn

Yes, I have 2 enormous conifers both much taller than the house. I've lived in this house for nearly 30 years, and had them pruned once. I was saving up to have them pruned again, but the money had to go elsewhere, so I had all appendages crossed when Eunice threatened. Fortunately they are still standing.
Insurance companies all ask if there are any tall trees within a certain distance of the house, - can't remember exactly what - and I've always been able to say yes - just. Now I'm worrying that I won't be covered because of the height. No one has mentioned the cost of having a very large tree felled - am dreading the answer, but would be interested to hear.

This year we’ve had two large conifers felled and a 35ft eucalyptus. The biggest conifer was £600 and the smaller plus the eucalyptus £1200. That included removing all the debris, but not the stumps. They also cut the main Eucalyptus trunks into logs so we could season them for our fire.

rowyn

Yes, I have 2 enormous conifers both much taller than the house. I've lived in this house for nearly 30 years, and had them pruned once. I was saving up to have them pruned again, but the money had to go elsewhere, so I had all appendages crossed when Eunice threatened. Fortunately they are still standing.
Insurance companies all ask if there are any tall trees within a certain distance of the house, - can't remember exactly what - and I've always been able to say yes - just. Now I'm worrying that I won't be covered because of the height. No one has mentioned the cost of having a very large tree felled - am dreading the answer, but would be interested to hear.

they don't all ask, mine didn't.

Nope. My own trees all have TPO's on and I get a firm in the check them regularly (about every 4 years). My only other neighbour who has trees (my garden backs onto seven others) does the same and had a dangerous tree taken out a couple of years ago.

We had an enormous Cedar tree in our garden 9 meters from our house. It was always shedding branches, cones and needles as well as making our house dark. It had a preservation order on it which means you can't cut or fell it without Council permission. I applied to the council to have it removed because I thought it was too close to the house. We were told to get an arbourist's opinion on it's condition and proximity, then get them to fill in the application forms for the removal of the tree for Council approval. It stayed on their public website for 6 weeks after which permission was granted. The arbourist removed the tree shortly afterwards. I am so relieved and we are now able to enjoy our garden. We did plant another small tree in it's place.

Yes, I have 2 enormous conifers both much taller than the house. I've lived in this house for nearly 30 years, and had them pruned once. I was saving up to have them pruned again, but the money had to go elsewhere, so I had all appendages crossed when Eunice threatened. Fortunately they are still standing.
Insurance companies all ask if there are any tall trees within a certain distance of the house, - can't remember exactly what - and I've always been able to say yes - just. Now I'm worrying that I won't be covered because of the height. No one has mentioned the cost of having a very large tree felled - am dreading the answer, but would be interested to hear.

We’ve had a lot of large trees in all the gardens we’ve owned, and have followed the advice given above by previous posters, so not going to repeat it.
But, please do not attempt to kill a tree by putting nails in it, as suggested, or using any sort of poison. Apart from the environmental damage, you may start the tree rotting from the inside and then it will fall, possibly on you.

Mumi

Yes I worry that there are too few trees in this country. They help to regulate our planet's health and filter out pollutants. I'm starting to think I'd rather see trees than people - although this might be just that I'm feeling depressed from recent news.

The problem is that some trees are in the wrong place.

Perhaps if someone has a tree chopped down for any reason than disease, the cost should include enough to plant another five somewhere more suitable.

If there were more trees along riverbanks it could help alleviate flooding.

Yes I worry that there are too few trees in this country. They help to regulate our planet's health and filter out pollutants. I'm starting to think I'd rather see trees than people - although this might be just that I'm feeling depressed from recent news.

One of my neighbours have a huge fir tree in their back garden. We are all bungalows and it towers way above us. The people who have it must not get any light at all in the back of their home where it is, I'd have it gone. If it ever did come down I'm sure it would wipe out 6 bungalows with it, mine included.

I worried about one in my neighbour's garden, an enormous fir tree. It swayed so much one night I slept in the spare room at the other side of the house. I reported it to the housing association who sent somebody to look at it and it was immediately cut down as it was so dangerous.

She also has a field maple in the garden which blocked all the light in my garden on the kitchen side (my garden is sort but wide). I didn't want to bother her as she is in her 90s but as soon as I mentioned it to her she had it topped out so instead of 40 feet tall it is now about 15 feet tall. It still casts a lot of shade but at least I get some sun in the kitchen now. Definitely worth talking to neighbours if you have a problem rather than sitting and stewing about it.

Yes I do worry about trees near my home. (Council owned). I have at least 5 all approx 50 feet high growing either in the shared garden area or the woodland ,which is part of the local park,. The city council won't do anything about them because they grow more than 10 feet from the house. In the last storm a few months ago 3 came down at once in the adjacent woodland and several more lost large branches. The council will eventually remove the branches that fall in the garden area but will do nothing about the very large old trees.

I suggest you contact your town council first and check that you may fell the tree, as I gather there are restrictions in the UK about this.

Then phone a firm of professional tree cutters and get an estimate. Ask whether they know of anyone who will buy the felled tree from you. Wood is after all valuable and you may be able to recoup some of the price of having the tree felled.

The firm should also be able to tell you whether you are correct in asssuming that a tree that size so near your house consitutes a danger.

Remember too that the roots may be damaging the founds of the house.

In your place, I would mention to my neighbour that I was considering having the fir tree felled and ask whether he is concerned about his tree. He might be happy to get an estimate for having it felled too. As far as timber prices go, his beech tree is more valuable then your fir as timber.

Not so Espee. Our insurance specifies all damage from all trees. Ours, theirs, near the house or not. DH has just rung them as we are due to renew next month. Also all sewers, on our land or not.

Yesterday a tree fell into the car park thankfully missing my car. It has been taken away now and we have someone coming to check on all the other large trees. I hope we don't have to lose any more.

I second what Esspee says and another point is that when the sap rises, the tree will be much heavier and more difficult to manage.

Chestnut. Time to get the tree in your garden cut down before the birds start nesting then you can explain to your neighbour why you have done it and give them the number of your tree feller.
Your house insurance is not valid against tree damage if your tree is close to the house.

We had x2 Oak trees felled which were causing problems with out house. One was over 150 yrs old other 50 yrs.
Long and the short of it the 50 Yr old tree on bridle path was at back of our house , the older one on Council field next to our house. Beautiful trees but over the years, they caused us lots of grief. We had paid for the younger one to be lopped twice after gaining permission by the council (even though no one claimed the bridle path) and I managed to get them to cut some of the big tree, Trees do need to looked after. The area did have TPO's but for a set number, more trees than the set number so no one could determine which ones.

Our house build in 1980's has a reasonable size garden, we think planners forget Trees grow!
We ended up having serious cracks with some subsidence.

We contacted our Insurance company they had to monitor for movement which took about 2 years plus they found Root DNA under areas of the house to identify the guilty trees.
Due to the changes in the Law regarding Trees near housing they could fell these trees, or if the council refused permission, the Insurance company can sue the Council.

They had to come down. It was sad but it was as if a light bulb had turned on in the garden.

Just looked at our insurance. We are covered in ‘storm’ for falling trees . But not if we cut off a branch ourselves and it falls through the conservatory roof e.g.
Nice to know.

We have huge trees all down one side of the house in the next garden, and a large oak tree at either end covered by TPOs. We have those cut back slightly every five years or so. They are all very large now and it is slightly scary - if the one in the front came down overnight it would probably kill us. They are all healthy though and less than 80 years old so I expect they will be there long after us. Every year we fill about 30 black bags with leaves through the autumn. When those have nearly gonr the garden waste bin is filled up every two weeks for about 3 months with acorns.

As the prevailing winds in this country are westerlys, if they fall, they should fall parallel to the row and not to the south onto, not only our house, but several others.

The immense damage in Scotland last year, including eight million downed trees, was caused because Storm Arwen came from the north instead of the usual westerly direction.

Trees grow against the prevailing wind but if it comes from elsewhere, they can go down like dominoes. Some of the scenes round here are extraordinary, almost like moonscapes or bomb damage with barely a dozen trees left standing in massive woodlands.

GrandmaSeaDragon
A neighbour had an ash tree on the border and a huge branch fell off it once, not in a gale but DD was sitting in the garden at the time. Luckily it missed her. He had it pollarded but rain got in and it rotted.

Jaffacake2

I had a tall fir tree felled a few years ago after looking through my home insurance and reading that if a tall tree is within a certain distance of the house it invalidated the policy. Sorry I cannot remember the height and distance stipulation but was horrified that I had jeopadised my insurance for many years.
Please read your policy.

Oh!

I shall tell DH immediately.
I'd pay for 20 trees to be planted in a forest if I could get rid of the one in our front garden but it has a TPO on it.

We have had trees on our roof a couple of times. We have some huge trees nearby and of course, being Australia, they are protected and you are fined if you take them out. I don’t mind,though ,because they are beautiful. We have a 60 footer down the bottom of our garden which was given to us as a ‘welcome ‘ shrub by some daft council garden worker 30 years ago. It was supposed to be 12 foot maximum. It looks like a a Australian mountain ash to me, one of our tallest trees.

Yes, I am concerned and no, you are not just a worrier!

In the 1987 hurricane, 100ft of our then large Surrey garden was completely obliterated by 3 enormous ash trees that were blown over diagonally onto us. Fortunately, only the shed and greenhouse suffered. DH went out and bought a chainsaw, as owners of the trees didn’t offer any help or assistance! They were part of the field belt left when the estate was built in the 30s.

Where we are now, we have one enormous ash tree in our rear garden, part of the original field belt of trees that extends to 6 adjoining rear gardens. Many have been felled over the years, but all remaining are known to be infected with honey fungus and other diseases, but are covered by TPOs put on when the houses were built in the 60s. We are not allowed to have these trees removed unless they are actually dead. If any of the trees fall, they would definitely damage our homes, but the TPO can’t be lifted, although the PC are in agreement, as it would cost money to do so. We did manage to get one tree on our property removed in 2018, the contractor issued a 7 day order, as it was so dangerous, but we’re instructed to replant with a similar tree. DH researched all about the suggested replacements, forest trees which would eventually be larger and taller than the diseased tree - along the lines of recommendations to plant at least 200 metres from buildings, when the planting site is 20 metres from our bungalow!

If your tree isn’t protected by a TPO or in a conservation area, I am pretty sure you can have it removed, although it might make the remaining tree more vulnerable, and the cost might be a consideration. What do your neighbours think about their tree. Could it be topped and thinned maybe, has it been examined by a tree expert to ensure it is not diseased.

Beautiful and vital as trees are, some have grown far too large for their surroundings and sensible options have to be considered. I am apprehensive now when walking in some wooded areas in high winds.