Storms and Tree Loss

 

It has been a bit more than a week of storms with significant tree loss.  Others had it much worse than us, as we had no damage to the buildings.  We figure we lost 15 poplars, birches, and Jack Pines.  Two of our tallest trees blew right over leaving sizable root balls.  One nice pine was just tilted, but looked so loose that it had to go down.  We do have two pines that we just tamped the soil back down to prevent water from going under them in hopes they will survive.  We know, long term, that trees can hold themselves straight like this as we have some tilted trees in spots.

And I thought of the two crossed palm trees in Its a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World years ago.  Trees need not be straight.  That is how the woods is.

All this has been made worse by the heavy rains we have had of late.  Two storms right after each other totaled five inches.  The sand can handle it, but the hold on the roots goes down.   Strange weather for drought, but I suppose that is gone now.  As I always said in North Dakota, “Drought is your friend.”  Of course basement water in the clay soil was the focus of my thoughts.

The root ball trees puzzled Daisy the Dog.  She stared at them trying to figure out how her world changed.  Hated the thunder, too.

It has been a number of clean up days so far.  The house area and woods along it are in good shape.  The root ball closings may take some time.  The more distant woods is on a wait and see basis.  Some of the litter has been taken away, but the main trunks may have to wait a while, maybe next season.

On the good side, the new Stihl chainsaw works nice.  I knew I wore the old one out, so getting the new one was  matter of time.  And in the start of this crisis for many, they had one ready to go at Ace.  It is just a bit small for the bottom of the root ball trees, but a neighbor said he can take those apart.