Hi Lori, If your plant was standing in water, it's probably the reason leaves are curling. I've seen it happen with other plants, just recently at Home Depot. It's a good thing you tossed out water..did it smell? How long was plant sitting in water? Does your pot have drainage holes? Monstera/Philos soil should dry before adding more water..Otherwise, they rot and grow spindly. Especially if it's sitting in a dark corner. I've read via plant books that Monsteras/Philos do well in dark areas, which I totally disagree with. On the contrary, they need light to grow, especially those w/large and/or variegated leaves. BTW, your plant is quite pretty..Toni PS, remove any mushy foliage/roots

Thanks to both of you for such quick replies ~ Well, the crew came back this afternoon and the owner was not happy that he couldn't just get it out quickly, but I stood my ground and told him we'd decided it just wasn't worth the risk. I've seen my father use his bulldozer to push over trees this size and I remembered those enormous splays of roots - couldn't imagine the hole it would leave next to my foundation! So everything might have been fine, but in a 50 year old house that has its share of minor base cracks (Kansas clay gets very dry), perhaps it's best to err on the side of caution. I knew I could rely on my old friend GardenWeb! Thanks again, Tesla29

Umm, that's "big" not "bit." I'm reminded by the other thread... what is the direction of prevailing winds in your area? When trees do go down, which direction do they tend to fall? It might be kind of random in a hurricane. But in a normal storm? That's the kind of question you can ask a local arborist. Some of them think they work for the tree and not for you, so beware those. And Tom, I'm amazed you're duped by a photo that looks good from one direction. You've seen the ones that show that the main trunk has a substantial lean on it and that the upright part is a subservient branch that ended up growing upright, probably when the leader went rogue for some reason. And that crack is still there even though it doesn't show in the picture. You know trees keep growing and putting mass on at the top no matter how big they get. By the way... sewers: tree roots don't usually heave them up but rather infiltrate and plug them. They are after the water in them, so have no interest in going underneath. Similarly, roots go under sidewalks in part because moisture reliably accumulates under there, especially right on the underside of the concrete or stone - that's why they heave them rather than delving into the dirt under them. So you wouldn't have a sewer failure in the yard; you'd just need to rout it out. When we had a willow growing this close to our sewer line, we had to rent the rotorooter about once a year; sometimes got away with 18 months. This was with a new PVC pipe in place, but the junction to the city sewer was obviously vulnerable, because we always had to go that far to clear the blockage. So what is vulnerable is not the new pipe, but where it is connected, potentially to old clay pipe exiting the house, or at the connection to the city line. Be alert for drainage slow-downs on various fixtures in the house. Our first hint was always the downstairs toilet glugging when bath upstairs was being drained. Your tree is not as bad as a willow in this regard, but any tree that will heave a sidewalk like that IS a moisture-chaser. Anyway Eric I'll shut up now. Not stalking, really :-) Karin L

Hi Tony, try getting a Japanese saw, they are not expensive, and work very well. Cut from the bottom first, then the top; then you will have a clean cut. Bow saw sounds good, I never seen one of those. Norma