c/arborists

Found a simple wedge cut trick for stump grinding near foundations

After chipping my grinder teeth on a hidden patio slab last month, I tried making a shallow V-cut first to expose buried concrete and it saved me $300 in replacement teeth, has anyone else used this method before hitting hardscaping?

Warning: changing my rope climbing technique mid-job almost got me stuck

I always used a Blake's hitch for ascent, but last month I switched to a mechanical Prusik after a buddy convinced me it was faster. Tried it on a 60-foot white oak in Portland and nearly couldn't get back down when the locker jammed on a wet branch. Finally went back to the Blake's halfway through and finished the job in 20 minutes. Has anyone else had bad luck with mechanical hitches on wet bark?

I finally got my climbing line to stop tangling on every single job

I've been fighting with my climbing line for months now. Every time I'd throw it up into a big oak or maple, it would twist up into a mess and I'd waste like 10 minutes just untangling it before I could even start my ascent. Last week I was working a removal on a 60 foot silver maple in Nashville and I just got fed up. I remembered an old guy at a ISA conference mentioning to try a different hitch cord configuration, so I swapped my usual 8mm beeline for a 10mm yale and ran a Michoacan instead of my standard VT. Dude, it was night and day. The line ran so smooth through the friction hitch on that first throw and I climbed the whole tree without a single tangle. Has anyone else had luck with the Michoacan over a VT on a 10mm cord?

That old oak I was supposed to remove last month is still standing

Got a call three weeks ago to take down a big oak in someone's backyard in Austin. Turns out the tree had a massive hollow section near the base, but the crown was still full and healthy. I decided to leave it up and told the homeowner to just let it die naturally instead of risking a bad fall. Has anyone else walked away from a job like that and felt good about it?

That time a client's hedge revealed a rusty moped from 12 years ago

I was trimming a giant overgrown laurel hedge last Tuesday in Portland and my chainsaw hit something solid. Pulled back the branches and found a whole moped buried in there, rusted to hell with tags from 2012. Has anyone else uncovered random junk inside a tree or hedge like that?

Serious question, is this oak tree beyond saving?

I pruned a big red oak in my backyard three weeks ago and took off a branch that had some funky bark. Now I'm seeing these little black spots popping up on the trunk near the cut, and a couple leaves are turning brown early. My neighbor who used to work for Davey said it might be oak wilt, but I'm not sure if that's even possible this time of year in Ohio. Has anyone dealt with black spots after a late summer prune and had the tree pull through?

The old climbing rope trick I almost forgot about...

I was up in a big oak yesterday in Austin and my flip line kept slipping on the smooth bark. Remembered an old timer showing me to wrap it twice and then give it a half hitch before you even load it... been years since I did that. Has anyone else got a forgotten trick from back in the day that still works better than the new gear?

Talked to a logger last week who changed how I think about pruning cuts

He told me he never uses a handsaw above his shoulders because one bad cut from fatigue can ruin a tree for decades, and it made me realize I've been pushing through tired arms way too often on big oaks - has anyone else scaled back their cutting when they start to feel it in their shoulders?

Had a chat with a landscaper that changed how I look at pruning cuts

I was talking to this old landscaper while he was dropping off a load of branches at my shop last Tuesday. He pointed at a tree I had pruned and said 'your cut is too close to the collar, you're asking for rot down the line.' I always thought a flush cut was the cleanest way, but he explained how the branch collar seals itself if you leave it. Now I'm second-guessing every tree I've worked on, has anyone else had that moment where you realize you've been doing something wrong for years?

My old climbing gear felt like betrayal last Tuesday

I pulled out my 15 year old harness to show a new guy what we used to run with. The thing weighed twice as much as my current one and had no padding on the leg loops. Anybody else hang onto old gear for sentimental reasons or am I the only packrat?

I finally heard a kid ask his dad why the tree had a rope around it

Overheard this at a park in Denver last Saturday, the dad explained cabling and bracing to his 8-year-old like it was the coolest thing on earth. Made me think about how we used to just tie trees up with whatever was lying around, not like today's gear. Anyone else notice more folks asking about proper tree support now?

Discovered a 50 year old oak had root rot after a storm last Tuesday in Portland

I was out checking a client's property after that big wind came through and found the whole root system was mush underneath, which made me wonder how many of my other jobs have hidden decay I'm just not catching.

A retired logger told me I was climbing all wrong

I was cutting a big dead oak in a backyard near Eugene last week and this old timer watched from his porch. After I got down he walked over and said I was using too much energy on my footlock and not letting the rope do the work. He showed me a little hip thrust technique that took half the effort. Has anyone else got a tip from an old school guy that totally changed how you climb?

Hit 500 trees pruned this season and it snuck up on me

I was just tallying up my job logs for the month and realized I passed 500 trees pruned since spring started. Never thought I'd hit that number in one season, especially after that rough elm removal in June that took three days alone. Anybody else keep track of their counts and get surprised by the total?

Hit my 500th tree removal last Tuesday and almost forgot to count it

I was so focused on getting this big oak down behind a garage that I didn't even realize it was my 500th takedown until my ground guy pointed out the tally mark on my notebook. Did any of you guys mark a big milestone and totally blank on it until later?

Old forester told me to leave the sawdust on the stump and I ignored him for 5 years

The mistake people make with oak tree pruning in summer

I keep seeing videos online where people are trimming oak trees in July and August. That's exactly when oak wilt spreads the fastest through open wounds. I learned this the hard way when I lost three big oaks on a job near Austin after I trimmed them in August. Now I only prune oaks from November through February and seal cuts right away. Has anyone else had oak wilt issues from trimming at the wrong time?

Picked a Silky Zubat over a Corona handsaw for my last pruning gig

I was stripping a big oak in Austin and went with the Zubat because of the curved blade, and it cut through those 6 inch limbs way faster than I expected. Anyone else find the straight blade bogs down on thicker stuff?

Old timer told me my pruning cuts were "too clean" - changed how I trim deadwood now

Was working a big oak in Chester last month, removing some dead branches. This guy who's been climbing for 30 years walks over and says I'm making my cuts too clean. I was like, isn't that the goal? He said no - on big limbs you want a bit of a stub, not flush with the collar. He showed me his cuts and they looked kinda rough but he said the tree heals better with a little extra left. I've been doing it his way for a few weeks now and honestly the trees don't look as hacked up. Anyone else learn this the hard way?

Switched from rope and saddle to a bucket truck last month for big removals

Honestly, after 12 years of climbing, that $1500 rental saved me three hours on a single oak removal in Detroit, so now I'm wondering if anyone else thinks bucket trucks are worth the cost for occasional use?

Last Tuesday I climbed a 100-foot oak to remove a widowmaker and found an entire squirrel pantry stuffed with black walnuts in a crotch cavity

The branch came down clean but then I got pelted by like 30 walnuts raining on my helmet, has anyone else ever discovered a stash like that mid-climb?

TIL a single bad storm can wreck a whole week's worth of work

Last Tuesday we got hit with 60 mph gusts out of nowhere here in Portland. I had three big removals lined up and had to cancel all of them because of safety concerns. Spent the whole week just chasing down storm damage calls instead of sticking to my schedule. Anyone else have a storm totally throw off your routine like that?

Warning: That perfect climbing day turned into a nightmare with one bad cut

That branch peeled down and cracked the main leader about 12 feet up. I spent the next 4 hours in 95 degree heat climbing with a come-along and trying to rig it back. My ground guy kept saying 'you sure about that?' which didn't help. By the time I got it stable I was drenched and my forearms felt like jelly. Have any of you had a routine job go sideways from one single bad decision like that?

That live oak I tried to climb nearly took me out last winter

I was in Austin working a big live oak removal after a storm and thought I had my rope set solid. Got maybe 15 feet up and a big branch I didn't see shifted under my weight, dropped me straight onto my harness. Had to rappel down and reset with a different anchor point, took an extra hour. Anyone else had a climb where the tree tricked you like that?

My favorite climbing lanyard snapped mid-ascension last Thursday

I've been using the same 3-strand eye-and-eye lanyard for about 8 years now. Everyone told me to retire it after 5, but I figured as long as it looked good and felt strong, it was fine. Well, I was maybe 30 feet up a big red oak outside Austin when I shifted my weight and heard a pop like a firecracker. The damn thing gave way right at the splice. I went down about 10 feet before my friction hitch caught me, and let me tell you, my heart didn't start beating again for a solid minute. I had only done a quick visual check that morning, no real inspection. So now I'm replacing it with a 12-strand spliced one, and I'm kicking myself for being stubborn about gear age. Has anyone else had a close call from using climbing gear way past its recommended lifespan?