Children In Summer Park

Removing Trees from Backyard

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There’s no doubt that trees are extremely important to our environment. Not only it could provide shade and protect a home against cold winds, but it also cleans out the air, provides habitat and food sources to many species.

It takes many years for a tree to grow to a decent size. Plus a child could have lots of fun and great memorable growing together with a tree. This is why I never thought of removing any of the trees in my backyard until yesterday.

Last week, there was a severe wind storm in the area I’m living. I could see that many houses have damaged roof shingles, traffic lights fall, as for my backyard, one of the pine trees is leaning to about 70-degree angle.

Is it illegal to Cut Down Trees on Your Own Property?

As I was showing my neighbor about the leaning tree, he suggested me to call the local government before taking any actions. Luckily, I took his advice. Because as I was researching online, I realized some cities have bylaws to govern removing trees, even when they are on the owner’s property. In some instances, removing without getting a government permit could result in hefty fines.

There’s news where a property owner was fined with $10,800 for removing trees in her property in Canada. [1]https://www.yorkregion.com/news-story/7234964-markham-woman-faces-10-800-fine-or-has-to-plant-18-trees/

So I immediately contacted the local government and explained to them about the situation. I expressed that I’m not an expert about trees, and request them to send an arborist to inspect it.

As the administrative process could take several days to complete, in the meantime, I did some research below. Hopefully would be helpful to some of you out there.

How to Save a Damaged Tree?

According to an article from houselogic [2]https://www.houselogic.com/by-room/yard-patio/save-tree-storm-damage/, not all damaged trees need to be removed. If the tree is not in hazard of falling, there are some steps you could try to save your trees.

Step#1: Remove the broken and hanging branches, as they can no longer supply nutrient to the tree. But you should keep the healthy ones.

Step#2: Inspect for cracks in the limbs. If you do see one, then cut out the limb until to the next healthy one.

Step#3: Straighten and stake the damaged tree, then water it frequently as if you are planting a new tree. However, to my understanding, this strategy might only apply to small trees.

How to Tell if a Tree is Dead?

There are different ways to tell if a tree is dying.

1) Check the liveliness of a tree. You could do so by examing if there are new leaves or leaf buds, or healthy branches. This is actually not that difficult to notice. Just compare your tree with its similar type in your neighborhood. If all the others have leaves or flowers, but yours are leafless, then there could be something wrong with your tree.

This tree looks quite healthy to me. What do you think?

2) Apply the Tree Scratch Test. [3]https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/tree-scratch-test.htmWhat you need to do is to scratch out the dry outer layer of bark in a tree’s trunk. Beneath it, you should see another layer of bark. If the tree is healthy living, you could see some green tissue on it. Whereas if it is dead, it will look brown and dry.

When doing this test, you could use a pocket knife to do the scratch, but make sure not to make a massive wound to the tree.

Although you could also apply this method to a branch, this might not work too well. In some instances, a tree may sacrifice some of its branches to keep the rest alive. Therefore, you were to test out with branches, be sure to try it on several ones.

3) Look for fungus at the base of the tree. If fungus or mushrooms are growing, often this is a sign of root disease.

4) Sudden and noticeable leaning of a tree is another vital sign. In this case, the root could be damaged. You should contact a certified arborist asap to inspect it.

How Long Does a Dead Tree Take to Fall?

A family from Connecticut posted online [4]https://ask.extension.org/questions/242286
 that they have a maple tree that is dead for five years. They don’t want to cut it as they have been enjoying the bird activity. I also saw the tree photo they took; it looks nice and straight to me. They wonder how many years they could still enjoy it before it becomes a danger.

A horticulture consultant from UME Home and Garden Info Center responded that there is no way to predict how long a tree will remain upright. They also stated that some dead trees could benefit wildlife all along the food chain.

Their suggested approach for this family is to remove tall and long branches. Then only keep the main trunk for birds. This removal could reduce top weight, while branches could catch the most wind, which potentially pulls the tree over.

Of course, if tree presents a hazard, always call a tree service company.

When to Cut Down a Tree on your Property?

This is our tree under the windstorm.

According to an article from Budget Dumpster [5]https://www.budgetdumpster.com/blog/tree-disposal-cut-down-dying-tree/, you should remove a tree if:

  • 50% of the tree is dying
  • 1/3 of the tree is hollow
  • The trunk is severely damaged. (i.e., It has vertical cracks with large wounds)
  • Sudden and noticeable leaning.

I then did some more research on this topic and found brilliant advice from a certified arborist. [6]https://www.quora.com/Should-I-cut-down-a-tall-dead-tree. The rule of thumb is if you see there is a potential hazard of the tree falling on to:

  • People, pedestrians, workers
  • Residence or building
  • Utility lines
  • Cars
  • Fences or other structures
  • Sidewalks or nearby streets

Then you should remove the tree as soon as possible. Else, this could lead to vital damages to people or premises, and it could lead to a severe legal liability issue.

Who is Responsible for Removing Dead Tree?

To be honest, I’m really unsure about this. Once I spotted a leaning tree in my backyard, I called the insurance company immediately. Although it might sound counterintuitive, they expressed that unless the tree did fall and cause damages, their policy would not cover to remove a leaning tree.

I also called the local government. To my understanding, they will send a tree preservation technician to inspect the tree, then to determine whether to remove it or not.

I don’t believe they would remove the tree for me. Most likely, I’ll end up hiring a tree servicing company to handle it, which will be paid from my own pocket 🙁

How to Cut Down a Dead Tree?

I made some measurement to my leaning tree. The diameter is not very large; it’s only 33 cm. (In case you forgot about your high school math, to calculate the diameter, you simply measure the circumference, then divide this number by 3.14)

However, the tree is indeed tall. It has over three storey in height. Regardless of which way it falls, it would definitely hit either my house or one of the fences. Therefore, I wouldn’t DIY in removing it, I would hire a tree servicing company to handle it.

When hiring such company, I would look for one that has:

  • Licensed or certified professional to perform the duty
  • Adequate liability insurance coverage
  • Great customers feedback. I will ask around my friends and neighbors, then check out the companies’ online rating.

How Much Will it Cost to Cut Down a Tree?

There are a number of factors that determine the cost to remove a tree. It depends on the complexity of the job and height of the tree. On average, it would range from $150 to $1,500.

However, the cost is also subjected to the services you need. I checked on a website called TreeRemoval [7]http://www.treeremoval.com/costs/. It lists out that the average cost for:

  • Stump Removal ($60 to $350 per stump)
  • Limb Chipping (Approximately $75 or more)
  • Trunk Removal ($50 to $100)
  • Log Splitting (Approximately $75)

If you are living in a remote area, some companies might charge you extra for traveling expenses.

As a general guideline, the average cost to remove a tree with height:

  • Up to 25 feet – Range from $150 to $500
  • 25 feet to 75 feet: Range from $200 to $1,000
  • 75 feet or higher – At least $1,500

Make sure you understand what kind of services you’ll need before you hire, and get quotations from several well-reputable companies.

How to Get Rid of Cut Down Trees?

The obvious way is to hire a tree servicing company to remove it from your yard. However, this is not the only method. With great planning and creativity, the woods can also be put to good use.

Don’t you think this image would like great on your Pinterest board?

1) Chop it for firewood.

Depending on the type of tree you have, you might be able to chop it for firewood. Due to safety reason, you should wait until it is completely dried out and seasoned. You’ll need to leave it dry out for at least nine months. Some hardwoods such as oak could require more than one year, while others might even season for two to three years. [8]http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/home/ct-home-0130-garden-qa-20150126-story.html

This would be great if you have a fireplace at home. If not, you could also donate some of them to local Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts troop. Giving to charity would be another good option, where they could help out low-income families in heating up a home during winter.

2) Use it for decoration and kid’s entertainment.

When I was walking through my neighborhood, I saw some property owners are using chopped logs to beautify their house.
Some of them are using the woods as a border of their lawn, while some are beautifully placed together with other gardening decoration.

If the logs are chopped with nice flat surfaces, your kids could also use it for stepping logs in their playground. Just make sure you install them securely into the ground.

3) Grind it into mulch

It is a useful recycling method. A nice layer of mulch can help reduce weeding, cool the soil during the summer, and conserve water. Ultimately, would lead to healthier plant and more beautiful lawn.

My Final Thought about Removing a Tree

Although we should do our best in preserving a tree, if it really poses a danger to other people or premises, it is our responsibility to have it removed.

After all, the people who walk by your home could be your neighbors or your kids’ friends from school. Being a father myself, I also wouldn’t want my child to walk by a place where there is a potential hazard of falling a tree.

If we were to remove the tree, my family and I would certainly miss it. There are lots of great memories where we enjoy laying on a hammock attaching to it, playing hide and seek.

However, this is actually a good opportunity to teach a child about the lifecycle of matters.

 

Update: I finally removed the leaning tree, here is a post with the updates. https://backyardforkids.com/what-to-do-after-tree-removal/

 

 

Disclaimer: We are not an arborist, and not a tree expert. Please use your judgement to determine the safety of each and consult with a certified arborist. This content of this website is for general information, and do not intend to provide any specific advice. Although we tried our best in providing accurate information, we cannot guarantee they are error-free. Information displayed on this website could be subjected to change. For any medical-related question, you should always consult with your family doctor. For safety or product related question, you should consult with the actual manufacturer or qualified technician. You should also check the laws of your local government.

Affiliate Disclosure: Please note that some of the links above are affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, we will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase after clicking on the link. Please understand that we include them based on our experience or the research on these companies or products, and we recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something through the links. Please do not spend any money on these products unless you feel you need them or that they will help you achieve your goals.

 

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