tree hit by car :(

10 years ago

Hi,

We have a contract on a new home and just found out that one of the beautiful old maple(?) trees in the front yard was the victim of a car accident. Is there any way to know if this tree will be okay? How can we help this tree? Thanks!

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Comments (6)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
hey

bum deal ...

first.. a driver hit the tree.. a car can not be held responsible ... is this recent.. or historical????

second.. trees heal themselves.. its called encapsulation ... it might only live another 50 to 75 years ... if its just skin damage .... though there may be some canopy issues ...

but we probably cant tell you much online ... especially if there is an issue of internal structural damage ... most likely you are going to need an onsite opinion by a certified arborist ...

what do you mean you have a contract... ??? have you closed??? this may be a material reason to avoid continuing on the offer .. if closing is not done ... but that would be for a local atty to answer ... or at least your real estate agent ...

do collate all the requisite police reports.. so you can make a claim against the driver .. [or his car if you wish.. but most cars are deadbeats .. uncollectable.. lol] ... get the drivers insurance info ... and file a property claim.. if you are in fact.. owner of the property ...

your problem is the limbo of the pending house sale.. hence.. did you close [its your claim] ... or is the closing pending.. probably meaning its the owners claim ... what a nightmare ...

ken
wisconsitom
10 years ago
a holston, Ken meant 'compartmentalization', and this is the ability of woody plants to wall off injury through chemical and physical means. It is an interesting subject, but not something that can be briefly covered. At least, not something I'm up to laying out right at the moment!

Suffice to say though that the tree either will or will not be able to close this wound-both externally and internally-and that all you can do to aid this process is the usual stuff that helps trees. The biggest thing, practically the only thing, is to ensure the tree is not suffering from drought. And if you do elect to water it, realize that this means watering the entire area.

Conversely, if you're fortunate enough to not be in a drought-stricken area, then even this is unwarranted. But keep it in mind for a year or two hence, if it gets dry then. Trees have been getting dinged up-though not by cars-for millennia, and they've developed means to deal with it. No fancy snake oil is going to help. It could be warranted to fertilize the entire root zone, but that's controversial as heck. If you do decide, hopefully after doing some research, go easy with the stuff. A little might do some good but a lot won't do more good.

+oM
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Glad that it wasn't a bang on the driver's door, girl! Not long after I got this car, I thought that I went into an intersection on a green ... and a car that came through three lanes hit on the driver's side ... but back at the back tire area. I was ... substantially ... very substantially ... thankful! It seemed to be the general concensus that I'd run a red light ... but I figure that he ran a yellow, as when my car had been turned around about 180 degrees - there, staring at me through the windsheld, was a green light, in the same direction that I'd been travelling ... and if I'd run a red light, it should have been red! Anyway - I also like to pick spaces in parking lots where I can drive out (but must confess to being a bit too lazy/(mis-guided?) to back into empty spaces). I hear that a bit of a longer walk is good for one's constitution? By the way ... did you say that the grandkid is wanting a car? Hhm-mm-mm-m! Hope that the rest of your weekend goes better. I, too, value my wheels ... and one needs be extra careful around here, for if one in 70s or higher is in a fender-bender or two, one is liable to get a letter from the Ministry of Transportation to say that they are cancelling one's driving permit. We have a discussion session of about an hour and a half with about a dozen others, with a test of knowledge and signs, with some being selected for a driving test, every two years after age 80. ole joyful P.S. As I was fairly sure that there were still quite a few good miles in that little 20-year-old Mazda that I'd bought only a few months earlier, after the accident I chose to repair it, at a cost larger than I'd paid for it ... partly for environmental reasons, as it costs a great deal of scarce and precious fuel to dig iron ore from the ground, smelt it, then carry it through all of the manufacturing operations ... plus add quite a lot of petroleum-based plastic, to build a new one, but repair is mainly a lot of work. In addition to the amount that's added to global warming ... and pollution. o j
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Thanks for the update. Glad he is ok. Sorry about the other bad things in your area. Stay safe and that goes for your kids, too.
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Have you contacted your homeowner's insurance? If not that should be your next call. They will step in and make sure the driver's insurance pays, but liability limits are often not all that large on cars. Many people would be in real trouble if they hit a Bentley or other very expensive car (the owners usually have uninsured/under-insured coverage for just this case). If you are liable for more than the policy amount, then you may be on the hook for the balance. How it proceeds depends on how much money it is and how much the insurance company thinks they can try to squeeze out of you. A judgment against someone with no assets that can be attached is not worth all that much (think 'law suit proof').
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I rarely notice vehicles of any kind backed into spaces so I paid attention while we were out running errands today. We were at Costco, Home Depot, the grocery stores, a large medical complex and went out to dinner before heading home. All total, I saw four vehicles backed into spaces and all were full size pickups, which is pretty much what I observe anytime I'm out. It makes me wonder if backing into a space is a regional practice not seen in my area or if most people tend to pull forward into a space when parking. Now, what really gets my goat is someone with a large full size pickup or SUV pulling a long trailer who takes up two+ spaces when they park due to the combined length of the vehicle/trailer. It's not the two+ spaces that bugs me; it's that they generally insist on parking near the store entrance and taking up two+ spaces with the butt end of their trailer blocking most of the lane between rows of spaces making it impossible for anyone trying to find a space to drive down the lane. These people are being rude and need to use the rarely used spaces at the edges of the parking lot so that they don't cause parking lot jams. Grrrrrrr... Edit to add that we own a full size 4x4 pickup, but always try to be polite about where and how we park. Hubby is good at backing into tight spaces, but I am a complete and dismal failure especially if any distance is involved.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
fertilizing a tree is as simple as fertilizing the lawn with a general fertilizer ... though since it is stressed i might stay away from ferts with plant killer in it ... e.g. crabgrass killer.. etc ...

whatever you call it.. the tree if otherwise healthy .. will take care of itself.. no painting.. no nothing.. maybe in a year or two.. some shaving of the hangnails [for lack of a better term]...

but i still would wonder about interior.. UNSEEN structural damage.. it sure looks like that tree would win over a collapsible car .. but i would hate to think that there is a big fracture hidden in there..

the real issue is.. will it fall on anything important.. should it fail catastrophically ... if its out in the middle of the yard.. so what.. but if it will kill you in your sleep one night.. i would suggest a professional should look at it ..

see link about structural weakness .... though that trees problem was not a car accident ....

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link
BobtheArborist
10 years ago
Some tree species compartmentalize (form a "scab" to wall off decay) better than others. No matter what, the tree has lost its vascular ability to transfer water and nutrients up this side of the tree, so don't be surprised if branches higher up on this side show more die-off than the rest of the tree. Hard to tell without seeing some leaves whether this is really a maple. If so, maples do generally need lots of water. Chemical fertilizers used on lawns are not the best for trees. A good organic fertilizer is best - liquid compost with some potassium, calcium, magnesium, manganese from natural sources like sea kelp, worm droppings, humus with microbial additives, mycorrhizal fungi to improve root absorption and then trace minerals mixed in would do it the best - especially if injected into the roots with a soil wand.
krnuttle
10 years ago
From the picture and what appears to be the position of the tree and the angle at which the car hit the tree, I believe the tree is in an excellent position to protect the house from attacks by cars.

I would hope for thee best and leave the tree until another one grew big enough to take over the defense of the house.
Brandon Smith
10 years ago
At my previous house I had a pretty decent sized sweet gum maple in the ft yard between the sidewalk and street. New Year's Eve 07 someone smoked it traveling pretty briskly. I didn't see the car or it smashed on my tree but the next day there were nasty oil/coolant slicks near the tree and the obvious damage the tree took which looked a lot like yours. I never even thought once that the tree would have a problem surviving (though if you know sweet gums, like me you would have hoped for the tree to be mortally injured!). Trees still there bug as ever, making gum balls and there is only a slight scar from the initial massive bark removal
That happened that New Year's Eve 5 years ago.

It'll be fine.

tree hit by car :(

Comments (6)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

wisconsitom

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