Fifteen Trees On Our Property.......!!!!!!

[Gerania]

The only trees that have been blown over in a storm in my yard have been pines. When they fell, the roots of the surrounding trees were damaged. I'd get rid of them before anything else.

I once had to take down a dogwood because it was diseased. The same property had two 100+ year old maples that were in bad shape. I not only disliked killing them, but it was also very expensive.

You don't need to feed mature trees as long as you don't scrape every fallen leaf out of the yard. They do a good job of taking care of themselves.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by sasie123

The trees that are near my house, 35 ft. from the house, are Pines. They look very healthy, since I feed them every year. Huge trunks, and wide-spread branches. Pines start at the bottom very robust, if they are taken care off, and rise above 70 ft. Toward the top, they are usually thinner.

If one would fall towards your house it would do considerable damage. You have to figure at 70' high those trees weigh many tons and can easily cause serious structural damage if they would hit the house. Its roots can get into a septic system, undermine and break asphalt ant concrete driveways, and damage a foundation or retaining walls (at that distance it will probably not damage the foundation). The tree's needles will clog your rain gutters and the sap will stick to your vehicles and it is hard to remove. Are your power lines close because they could be taken down in a storm by falling limbs.

The cost of removing those trees will go up; the process is labor intensive and requires specialist that are insured for the safe removal. It would not hurt to get some bids to find out how expensive. at least you would know and might be able to plan better.

Sometimes trees have large limbs that can pull the tree towards or away from objects, like your house. Sometimes trees do not grow straight and can lean towards or away from your house. This offset weight can also be a reason to have trees removed if they increase the odds of the tree falling in the wrong direction. One other possibility is to have just large limbs removed that offset that weight towards your house; of course that process can also be expensive.

I was fortunate enough to have the equipment, open property, and the skill to take most of my trees down myself. I would also highly recommend getting the stumps ground at the same time. That way you can consider replanting other trees that will not grow to the same height or you could just mow the area.