Another tree came down in my front yard today!

17 years ago

I posted recently about a giant apple tree in my front yard that I discovered had a huge hollow area. We decided to take it down, but nothing has been done yet. Then this afternoon I heard a huge THUD out front, and went out to find one third of the enormous King apple tree had come down.

This three grew into four equal (and largely horizontal) parts about five feet from the ground. The tree is at least 150 years old, and each part was massive. One of the four came down a few years ago, leaving three. Today the tree is down to two. The part that fell is so big that it's the equivalent of a whole tree with a wide trunk. It broke off at its base, and that area is so rotten that the break itself didn't make the usual crack-crack-crack sound before it hit the ground.

I'm just glad I wasn't under it. High on my To Do list is the job of planting a mock orange that I potted up a couple of weeks ago. If I hadn't impulsively decided to get my hair cut this morning I might have been out digging in the exact spot where the tree section now lies.

Sometimes it pays to procrastinate......

Susan

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Comments (8)

lydia1959
17 years ago
Well thank goodness that you were in need of a haircut!!

If we lived close, my DH would have cut the tree down for you free of charge. He has cut trees down for most of our neighbors. We can always use the wood, so it is a win-win situation.

Hope you get the tree taken down soon.
trishaw
17 years ago
I too wish we could all live in the same neighborhood. Can you imagine the block parties?

We would have helped cut your tree too! I am so glad you chose your hair this morning. Now, if it had been me, the hair would have lost.

Trish
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alisande
Original Author
17 years ago
It's funny about hair.....I can go weeks past the point where I really should get it cut, and it looks fine. Until one day it suddenly looks WAY too long. At least that's what usually happens with me--and which explains why my hair stylist always gets calls from me asking if she has any openings today.

Thanks for your good thoughts, Lydia and Trish, but I think I've got the tree cutting covered. My daughter pointed out that my DS is quite skilled at this, having worked for a tree company one summer. She reminded me that when her new house was in the planning stages last year, her brother cut down all the trees to clear the property. So......he'll be taking care of it.

I, of course, am a nervous mother about such things. But no more nervous than when he climbs his radio towers. Oy!

Susan
neesie
17 years ago
Sounds like it didn't hit anything; (Thankfully not you!) just think if it came down on your roof or car you'd have quite a project. Sorry you are losing what sounds to be a lovely tree. I have never heard of a King apple. Does it still produce at that age????
FlamingO in AR
17 years ago
I'm glad you needed a haircut, too, Susan! Geesh, that's scary!

Woody could help, too. He's in the process of cutting up a huge oak tree that we had to get a tree service out here to cut as it was leaning towards the house and couldn't be safely dropped as a whole tree. They used a bucket truck to trim most of the big branches off to lighten the top of the tree before felling it. $650 just to drop it, Woody's doing all the clean up and we now have more than enough wood for this winter and part of next. This is the first time we've needed to hire anyone and it was also a good learning experience, to see how they tied the tree and used other trees for leverage to keep tension on the one about to go over.

Good luck with your big King Apple. I'll have to google that. We used to have an old, old pear tree that produced tiny pears, but the deer loved the leaves. We would pick leaves for Clover and Blossom. It was a treat for them as they couldn't reach them.
mcmann
17 years ago
Glad you needed a haircut too. Will you still be able to get a graft from the King apple?
alisande
Original Author
17 years ago
The tree still has two huge sections, so as long as they maintain okay we should be able to get a graft. I hope so.

I Googled King apples myself, and here's some of what I got:

KING APPLE

Many old New England orchardists considered this choice apple for dessert, cider and storage. Fruits are uniformly large and flattened round, yellow background overlaid heavily with a dark red striping. Crisp white-yellow flesh with a fine blend of sugars and acids which produce an excellent cider. Fruit is not prone to scab.

TOMPKINS COUNTY KING .

Brought from New Jersey to New York in 1804 by Jacob Wycoff.
Grown in Tompkins County, New York, and called the King of apples, for size and flavor.
Fourth most popular New York apple in early 1900's.
Flesh sometimes translucent, said to sweeten the apple.
Primarily for cooking, in sauce, pies, cakes.

That was interesting, as I didn't know its whole name. There's a Hyde King, too, but the picture of that one didn't look like my King. They are larger than most apples. We grow seven varieties of apples here. Unfortunately, this year's May freeze killed off all the developing fruit. Here's a picture of the Tompkins County King:
neesie
17 years ago
How nice, if you have an apple tree to have one that produces fruit preferable for sauces, pies and cakes! You should have plenty of production with the two "trees" you have left!

I have several crabapple and one "real" apple tree that produces in my yard. Since we weren't the original owners we don't know what variety but are really glad to have it. The deer are happy for the crabapples.

Another tree came down in my front yard today!

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Another tree came down in my front yard today!

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