Back in September I was taking down a 60 foot red oak outside Allentown and misjudged where the weight was pulling. The trunk pinched my bar so bad I had to leave the saw in the cut and climb down to get wedges from the truck. Took me 45 minutes and a second wedge to free it up. Anyone else ever get a bar stuck like that and have to just walk away for a bit?
Had a job over near Cedar Rapids last summer where we were taking down a big American elm. I figured it would take about 6 hours but the trunk had rot deeper than I thought. Ended up with the whole tree coming apart at 30 feet and barely missing my buddy's truck. Has anyone else had a routine removal turn into a hairball like that?
I started climbing with a traditional MRS system back in 2019. Did everything on a Blake's hitch and friction hitch cord. Last year I switched to a rope wrench setup and it changed how I work. But here's the thing. I'm not totally sold it's better for every job. On removals with lots of limb walking the wrench feels smoother. But for pruning where I'm hanging in one spot for a while, the old MRS felt more solid and less finicky. What do you all lean toward? And when did you make the jump if you did? Or do you still run a standard hitch and think the rope wrench is overhyped?
I was reading through some old arborist reports from a job in Raleigh last month and found a detail that blew my mind. One red oak they measured had a root plate that shifted 4 feet during a hurricane, and the tree was still standing after. The numbers said that same tree could displace over 50 tons of soil and root mass in high winds. I had no idea the underground part could move that much without the tree falling over. How do you guys judge when a tree with a shifted root plate is safe to keep versus a removal?
I hit 52 removals last Thursday on a big lot clearing job outside Portland. That's way more than my usual 20-25 and I felt it in my shoulders the next morning. Has anyone else pushed their daily count that high and found a good way to pace yourself?
I was in NYC for a family thing last weekend and stopped by Central Park. Walked past this bur oak near the Mall that's gotta be 250 years old, just towering over everything. Thing had these huge gnarly branches with bark so thick it looked like armor. Made me think about how we treat old urban trees vs. ones in the wild. Anyone else ever stumble on a city tree that made you stop and stare?
I was pruning a mature oak in Austin last Tuesday and this older homeowner came outside and asked why I was leaving branch stubs. I told him I was leaving a collar like I always do, but he showed me I was cutting way too far from the branch bark ridge. Turns out I had been doing flush cuts without realizing it, leaving quarter-inch stubs that take forever to heal. Has anyone else had a homeowner catch a bad habit you didn't even know you had?
I used to prune my client's oaks every October without thinking twice. Last year I held off until late winter on a big red oak in Portland, and the spring growth was way more vigorous and full. The branches filled out nicer and I saw way less dieback on the cuts. I swear the tree looked healthier within 4 months. Anyone else seen this dramatic of a shift just from changing the season you prune?
Bought a pair of those fancy aluminum climbing spikes 6 months ago thinking they'd save my legs on long removals. Cost me $400 and they flex way too much on big oaks. My old steel $150 pair from 2018 never had that issue. Anyone else gone back to steel after trying the lightweight stuff?
I tried a heavy prune on a mature red oak last March here in Ohio, following the usual dormant season advice. But instead of bouncing back strong like I expected, it got hit hard with oak wilt by June and lost three major limbs. My old timer buddy swears it's fine as long as you seal cuts, but my boss says never touch oaks after February. Has anyone else seen this happen or am I just unlucky?
Bought a new MS 261 last week for a job clearing dead ash trees near Lethbridge. Started it up, made two small cuts on a 12-inch trunk, and on the third cut the engine just seized solid. Tore it apart in the shop and found the piston scored from what looked like an oil delivery issue from the factory. Anyone else run into new saws failing that fast? I'm wondering if I should push for a full replacement or just rebuild this one.
I left a big maple stump about 3 feet tall last spring after a removal job near Portland. Wanted to create a natural perch for birds and maybe a spot for critters. But after 6 months the wood started rotting unevenly and created a hazard when a branch fell and split the top open. Now I'm debating if the wildlife benefit is worth the safety risk for the homeowner. Has anyone else tried this and found a way to make it work without the wood getting dangerous?
I had a call about an old oak with a deep cavity near the base. Figured it would be a quick 2 hour job to clean out the debris and check for rot. Turns out the cavity went almost 4 feet into the trunk and had packed soil and rocks inside. I ended up using a shop vac with a custom nozzle and a long scraper to get it all out. Took me nearly 5 hours total just to clear it enough to assess the tree's health. Anyone else run into hidden cavities that turned simple work into an all day thing?
I was reading an old arborist manual from the 80s that my mentor gave me last month. It had this chart about tree water uptake and I almost dropped my coffee when I saw that number for oaks. I always knew they were thirsty trees but 50 gallons sounds like a whole swimming pool every couple weeks. Has anyone else run into old facts like this that totally changed how you think about a species?
I was up in a 60-foot silver maple that had been topped decades ago and the regrowth was a mess of weak codominant stems. After I did a proper reduction cut on the biggest leader, the whole tree just looked more balanced and natural. Has anyone else noticed how different a tree looks when you actually respect its natural form instead of just hacking it back?
Last spring I watched a retired arborist at a workshop in Portland refuse to use wound dressing on a 40-year-old oak limb he cut, and he went off about how sealing cuts traps rot inside. I've had customers beg me to paint their cuts on ash trees, and I'm starting to wonder if we're just making people feel better or actually helping the tree - what do you all think about wound paints?
Started with a beat up Alaskan mill in my backyard 3 years ago, and now I'm renting a Lucas mill to keep up with demand. Has anyone else been surprised by how fast the volume adds up once you get a routine going?
I was taking down a mature white oak in a tight backyard in Portland and it just cracked with no warning. Luckily we had the pull line set right or it would have taken out a fence and a shed. Has anyone else had a tree fail on them mid cut like that?
Pulled up for a routine trim on a big red oak in Dayton yesterday. Homeowner just wanted clearance near the roof. I noticed a small wound scar and jabbed it with my probe. Found a hollow cavity 4 feet long inside the main trunk. The tree had a 6 inch ring of live wood holding up 60 feet of canopy. That stat keeps me up at night. Has anyone else found something this dangerous that looked fine from the outside?
I was helping a buddy clear out some dead oak branches in his backyard near Austin, and I had to decide whether to use his 12 foot pole pruner or just stick with a folding handsaw. Ngl, I went with the pole pruner at first because it seemed faster for reaching up high, but the branches were twisted and the thing kept binding on the cut. After the third jam I just switched to climbing up a step ladder with the handsaw and cutting clean through each one. Tbh, the handsaw took longer but I had way more control and didnt leave any torn bark behind. My buddy even said the pole pruner was a waste for that job. Has anyone else found that a simple handsaw beats power tools for tight canopy work?
I was just tallying my work logs from the last 6 months and saw I passed 500 trees pruned this season. That number hit me different because I usually do maybe 300 in a busy year (working solo in a smaller town). It really snuck up on me, partly because I picked up a few new commercial contracts that had big groves. The funny thing is I didn't even feel rushed or anything, just steady work every week. Has anyone else had a milestone like that where the count just piled up without you noticing?
We had 60 mph gusts coming through and that tree had a massive split right down the main trunk, but we got cables and braces in just before the worst of it hit - has anyone else had a close call with an old tree like that?
I was up in a 60-foot silver maple in a tight backyard in Oak Park. Had a cable choker on a heavy limb, thought I had the angles right. When I cut, the limb swung hard into the house gutter instead of dropping clear. Bent the gutter bad, homeowner was right there watching. I felt awful. That moment convinced me to finally take a proper rigging workshop. Always thought I could figure it out on the job, but one mistake showed me I was guessing too much. Has anyone else had a close call that pushed them to get more training?
Old-timer from the local chapter told me to always use a running bowline with a locking half hitch instead of my usual clove hitch setup. I thought he was just being stubborn, you know how some guys get set in their ways. But I tried it on a massive white oak in Dayton last Thursday, one with three major leads that usually takes forever to work. The running bowline let me adjust tension without retying, and I finished that canopy tie in maybe 4 minutes instead of 15. So which side are you on for primary anchor knots, the clove hitch or the running bowline? Has anyone else had a old timer's trick actually speed things up for them?
Talking to a old timer from Vermont at a conference last month and he said he still hand climbs everything, doesn't trust a bucket truck. Made me wonder how many of us are still doing things the old way just because that's how we learned.