Notes From The Understory

Dear friends,

With all the enthusiasm and good intentions of a first-time blogger, I thought I'd share today's good experience with you. Markus and I, by virtue of our business, look at lots - I mean, lots - of trees that are suffering for one reason or another. Mostly urban trees - trees in subdivisions, trees along sidewalks, in fence lines, over houses.... We do what we can to help these trees, and sometimes, unfortunately, there isn't much we can do. Trees are living organisms, and, like humans, they can only cope with so much. The drought of '09 has meant a huge increase in the number of times we've had to say "there's not much we can do." And it's depressing not only for the homeowners to whom we have to deliver the bad news, but also for us. We hate to see so many trees succumbing to drought stress and all of the factors that complicate and exacerbate it- like fungus, bacteria, soil compaction, over-pruning, mechanical damage.... I know, from talking to fellow tree company owners, that we're not alone in our sentiment.

So it was a particular joy today to visit with a client who has just purchased a property with virgin, untouched, trees. We looked at Live oaks that, best we can tell, have never been pruned, never been subjected to construction or soil compaction over their critical root zones, never been treated for any ailment, and never been fertilized. In short, they have never been interfered with. They've grown exactly where nature intended: in soil with just the right soil structure, just the right drainage, and just where that acorn happened to land.

And they are gorgeous. And huge. What a privilege to be asked to care for trees like these! Although they are full of dead wood, with grapevine aggressively entwining and limbs sprawling on the ground, it struck me how much more compromised our urban trees are, compared to these, from the very get-go (and by the way, in the preceding list, the only true threat to the overall health of a tree would be the grapevine). This is not news, I suppose. (And therefore not blog-worthy?) I know that for many people this is instinctual knowledge. But I think it's something we all must remember - arborists and homeowners alike. We ask our urban trees to live and thrive in environments that are a very far cry from what nature intended. And sometimes this is a very tall order. That said, we do have some excellent science on our side, don't we? The urban forest thanks you, scientists.

'Night folks!

P.S. I'll post photos of these fantastic trees tomorrow if the owner will let me.....