After reading all your advice, I decided on the sensible thing, which was to cut the tree down.
It's now a very heavy dense wood pile of 20 inch long logs of from a foot and a half (or so) in diameter down to about 10 inches or so in diameter.
The view has improved immensely, although I hadn't thought about how to remove the stump until now. I've chain sawed it to the ground so, I could either leave it that way, or dig around it to lower it below the ground (and then fill it in with soil).
Now I have to find a tree that grows only to twenty feet in height in California weather (where there is no rain from about May to the end of December) and no irrigation system (at least not where that tree was).
Thanks for all your advice. I learned that topping a tree is 'barbaric', so, I did the right thing in the end, as advised.
What do they do? They have tree counters running around counting the oak trees on your property and, if, you happen to be missing one, they ticket you?
PS: I'll look that law up; but it's already too late, from the standpoint of the tree, if California truly has such a tree-hugging law. Anyway, if they did, I'll argue it was, ummmm... it fell down ... yeah. That's it. It was a hazard to life and limb. It was going to fall and hit the dog or something like that. But let me look up the law first before I come up with the rationale.
Around here the properties are smaller, and there's not much in the way of logging, so the trees are viewed as a community resource, and as such they are treated much like a shared aquifer, or the prohibition against burning leaves. What you do can f*ck up your neighbor. Because of people saying "hey, the tree fell down" and clear-cutting their property, to the great detriment of their neighbors' property values, we now need to get permits to take down a tree above a certain size.
This is from Princeton, NJ: "Q: What are the penalties for cutting down a tree without a permit? A: Each tree removed is considered a separate violation. For each tree removed, the violator is subject to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars per tree, and shall replace each tree destroyed or removed with another tree approved by the enforcement officer. Replacement trees shall be planted near the location of the damaged or destroyed trees."
And in Pound Ridge, NY:
formatting link
And in your (now slightly less vegetative) native state:
formatting link
What you don't know can f*ck you up, too.
BTW, don't post the same question twice, and particularly don't start a new thread to do so.
OK. I looked it up and called the county tree hugger. Where I live, there is, apparently, no such thing as a protected species. ALL species of trees are protected, in these parts of California, above a certain size. Period.
Speficially:
- All trees more than 1 foot in diameter at 4.5 feet height are "protected", regardless of species.
In addition:
- Protected means you need a (free) permit to cut them down but not to 'prune' them.
- Then you need a 'notification period' to allow the neighbors to block the process.
- You can cut the tree down only after the notification period if the permit application is approved.
- You need to take a picture of the trees to be cut, and describe the species and show what you will replant with (with a property outline showing the trees and the plans).
- The species only matters because of something they call 'species value', which means an oak, for example, is 'worth more' than an eucalyptus to the environment - which they use in their replacement calculation.
- In addition, any tree of any size is 'protected' if it's in the county right of way, which is anywhere from 4 to 12 feet inward from the road. Those 'county' trees all need permits from county roads and airports.
I asked about dead and dying trees, and the county engineer said that those trees do not need a permit; likewise with downed trees.
However, if someone complains after the tree has been cut down, then, he said, there could be what he called, 'a problem'.
Generally there is no replanting requirement nor a notification period for dead and dying & downed trees (for example, the myriad Monterey Pines or California Oaks which die suddenly out here).
He suggested, if the tree is dead or dying or down, then to, at the very least, snap a picture of the tree, in case someone objects. Otherwise, he said the safest route is to get an arborist's report which says so; and submit that report with the application for the permit to remove.
If the county agrees that the tree was dead or dying or down, then they will notify me that there will be no permitting requirement.
Interestingly, there is a spot on the form for who will do the work, but, there is no requirement it be done by an arborist.
I have no idea what you're talking about. The second thread is about how long it takes an oak to dry. This first thread is about how to top a tree. Two totally different topics (although it's the same tree). :)
If you wanted to remove the stump through digging, you should _not_ have cut the tree to ground level. Digging a stump is harder than splitting the logs. You dig all the loose soil from around the tree starting about 2 feet away. Then you start cutting any major roots you expose.
It helps a lot if you have 4 or 5 feet of the stump to grab and rock back and forth. Don't use a shovel to pry it out, you'll break the shovel. Use a 5+ foot pry bar if you have one.
In that case tell them the tree was dying. You know this because you were planning on salting the sucker until it was dead, then were going to cut it with no need for a permit...
Yep, and it was on it's way out the minute you fired up the chainsaw.
Not to wanting to be a DH but....... how did you (do you) earn enough money to buy a house with oaks & a view but appear so totally clueless with respect to the "real world".
As in how to do real things........
paper pusher? entertainment industry? financial industry? attorney?
The guys in this newsgroup offering you guidance, the benefit of their wisdom & experiences, are a capable bunch. Read & learn and don't be so impulsive....
you went from "topping a tree" to a pile of oak logs and a flush cut stump in short order. :(
All because you wanted a view, that tree was probably older than you & now it's firewood (if you can figure out how to do some real work)........
another example of 21st century America, more money than brains.
Any chance you drive a Hummer? or maybe a Suburban?
Turning a large tree into firewood to support your desire for a view was not a noble effort. :( Thinning could have been a possible alterative. Don't let the wood go to waste.
Plant several other trees to atone....... it just might improve your karma. Use appropriate species, in appropriate locations, so some other AH does butcher them in 50 years.
I don't get why people often do that. I am in an older part of town. There is a nice house behind us that has some well spaced out good looking mature trees. The couple who lived there passed on and their son who lives in another state sold the house. The new owner announced that as soon as he could get around to it the trees were coming down so "the kids could play?"
About 10 years earlier the same thing happened at the house next door. The property had great specimens that were all professionally maintained. They cut down every one a few months after they moved in.
Not only do they look nice, but they sure help keep the house cooler. Sure, the leaves are a PITA, but the benefits are still greater than the work required to be rid of them.
I see some of the new house developments that are clear cut. It will be 25 to 30 years before they have decent trees. Assuming the homeowners are smart enough to plant a few.
Doesn't have to be older parts of town- I see the same thing in yuppie semi-rural subdivisions. They buy a wooded lot, and basically clear-cut it border to border (sometimes they leave 2-3 trees), build the house, and plant little sticks that won't be big enough to provide any shade till the kids are in college.
Of course, after the storm here six weeks ago, when I lost several large and elderly trees, I was luck they were not on the upwind side of my house. (My backyard is WAY to sunny now.)
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.