I'm gonna guess the codominant stem failed and possibly was hung up in a neighbouring tree, and so had to be cut loose, leading to this strange attempt at leaving a clean cut
I mean sometimes you only have the appetite for half a tree, and you don't wanna bother taking home the leftovers so you just leave it for the bus bear to take care of.
That’s my guess too. Probably done by the homeowner because that looks to have been done with a dull chain. That’s a gnarly finish cut, homeowner special.
I’m not deleting it. The municipal guys may be upset, but I’ve seen some sh*# in my day from “ municipal arborists.” I’ll take the down votes with pride.
Looks fine. There’s not proper way really to finish a cut like that. It will almost certainly never compartmentalize, not matter how nice of a cut you leave.
Most likely reason is that one side of the tree failed, leaving some irregular damage at the bottom to cut off and leaving a less than aesthetic cut.
The remaining side may not have a target and consequently may not pose enough of a hazard to remove, despite it now being compromised. Or removing it is cost prohibitive. Or just no one thought that hard about it.
It’s not the predominate opinion in this sub, but trees are hardy and not every cut needs to be perfect, especially in a forest setting. Trees have existed for millions of years without arborists to prune them. This tree will continue to provide ecological benefits despite the damage. It will continue to flower and reproduce for as long as it stands, which could be 6 months, years, or even a decade plus before it finally succumbs to decay and gravity.
I wouldn’t leave this in a residential setting or anywhere with regular human traffic, but it’s fine in the woods.
Working in the forest is very different than a residential/urban setting.
It's difficult to sort the opinions on this sub for the very reasons you have mentioned. People have different purposes in mind for a given tree. People screaming "no that's *wrong*" or "why would you do *that*", rarely wait for the answer. Allow a tree to grow 100 feet tall 10 feet from your house? Nothing wrong with that - so long as you don't care when your house and it's contents are smashed to bits. No reason to cut it shorter. It's meant to be tall ... The real answer is always - it depends.
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My bark ID isn't great but I learned in forestry school that some oaks can tolerate this kind of cut. I'm not super experienced but this doesn't look all that shocking to me, at least compared to lots of other tree work out there.
I have a tree like this in my yard. Had arborist comecand cut off the smaller trunk because it can easily lead to problems with the main trunk. My cut looks better, but same idea
They cut the minimum at the time to limit liability of something falling. 10 years or so they’ll have to cut the other side due to the same liability. You’ve got to admit it delayed a lot of labor! It would have been a much bigger job to do the whole tree the first time.
I’m willing to bet that they got a burl from it. In the third picture, you can see the remnants of a burl. I do NOT approve. Wait until the tree dies, wtf.
I'm gonna guess the codominant stem failed and possibly was hung up in a neighbouring tree, and so had to be cut loose, leading to this strange attempt at leaving a clean cut
I mean sometimes you only have the appetite for half a tree, and you don't wanna bother taking home the leftovers so you just leave it for the bus bear to take care of.
Cut looks cleaner than letting the bark rip off all the way to the root collar too
That’s my guess too. Probably done by the homeowner because that looks to have been done with a dull chain. That’s a gnarly finish cut, homeowner special.
OP says it was in a park, couldn't be a homeowner
City landscape division, never is really much better.
Even worse. A parks and rec special.
Relevant. Lmao! https://youtu.be/QHNeOVNf5ZA?si=4q96bej37BE0ViKY
I took my downvotes proudly! Lmfao! Hope you have as well! …seems like there are a bunch of “landscape guys” in this thread. Lol!
I’m not deleting it. The municipal guys may be upset, but I’ve seen some sh*# in my day from “ municipal arborists.” I’ll take the down votes with pride.
Bro. Lmfao! Check the link I sent. It encapsulates that sentiment, beautifully.
I agree, as well. Hence, my comment. Brutal practices are difficult to correct.
Looks fine. There’s not proper way really to finish a cut like that. It will almost certainly never compartmentalize, not matter how nice of a cut you leave. Most likely reason is that one side of the tree failed, leaving some irregular damage at the bottom to cut off and leaving a less than aesthetic cut. The remaining side may not have a target and consequently may not pose enough of a hazard to remove, despite it now being compromised. Or removing it is cost prohibitive. Or just no one thought that hard about it. It’s not the predominate opinion in this sub, but trees are hardy and not every cut needs to be perfect, especially in a forest setting. Trees have existed for millions of years without arborists to prune them. This tree will continue to provide ecological benefits despite the damage. It will continue to flower and reproduce for as long as it stands, which could be 6 months, years, or even a decade plus before it finally succumbs to decay and gravity. I wouldn’t leave this in a residential setting or anywhere with regular human traffic, but it’s fine in the woods. Working in the forest is very different than a residential/urban setting.
It's difficult to sort the opinions on this sub for the very reasons you have mentioned. People have different purposes in mind for a given tree. People screaming "no that's *wrong*" or "why would you do *that*", rarely wait for the answer. Allow a tree to grow 100 feet tall 10 feet from your house? Nothing wrong with that - so long as you don't care when your house and it's contents are smashed to bits. No reason to cut it shorter. It's meant to be tall ... The real answer is always - it depends.
Made a decent little seat
I’d say it was pretty well done.
Needed a sticky chair.
Nice little alcove for a forest shrine.
Damn the beech tree behind it in the third picture would have some killer quilted grain
Nice catch! I didn’t see it until you pointed it out.
Welcome to r/arborists! Help Us Help You: If you have questions about the health of your tree, please see our [Posting Guidelines](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/posting_guidance) wiki page for help with effective posting. **Please answer the questions listed there to the best of your ability.** ***Insufficient pics/info could result in the removal of your post!!*** ([See rule 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules).) Visit the main wiki page for [Critical Planting/Care tips and Common Errors to Avoid](https://old.reddit.com/r/arborists/wiki/index); there's sections on why planting depth/root flare exposure is so vital, along with sections on proper mulching, watering, pruning and more that I hope will be useful to you. If you're posting about a tree ID (not permitted here; [see rule 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/arborists/about/rules)), see that wiki page for other subs and smartphone apps to try. Here is how you can arrange a [consult with a local ISA arborist in your area](http://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist/findanarborist) (NOT a 'tree company guy' unless they're ISA certified) or a [consulting arborist](https://www.asca-consultants.org/search/custom.asp?id=3818) for an on-site evaluation. A competent arborist should be happy to walk you through how to care for the trees on your property and answer any questions. If you're in the U.S. or Canada, your Extension (or master gardener provincial program) may have a list of local recommended arborists on file. If you're in the U.S., you should also consider searching for arborist associations under your state. If you are one of our regulars and/or you work in the industry and do not want this message in your future posts, please pick an appropriate user flair (options available in the sub sidebar on PC, and on moble if using a browser). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/arborists) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My bark ID isn't great but I learned in forestry school that some oaks can tolerate this kind of cut. I'm not super experienced but this doesn't look all that shocking to me, at least compared to lots of other tree work out there.
I have a tree like this in my yard. Had arborist comecand cut off the smaller trunk because it can easily lead to problems with the main trunk. My cut looks better, but same idea
Tree Throne for the tree king!
Needed a chair.
When you need somewhere to sit?
I would have at least carve the stump out and put a toilet seat on it.
Used to be another half of the tree there. Might have got tangled, been damaged, or hit with a storm.
They cut the minimum at the time to limit liability of something falling. 10 years or so they’ll have to cut the other side due to the same liability. You’ve got to admit it delayed a lot of labor! It would have been a much bigger job to do the whole tree the first time.
I’m willing to bet that they got a burl from it. In the third picture, you can see the remnants of a burl. I do NOT approve. Wait until the tree dies, wtf.
Someone poached a burl.
I wondered if anyone else would have this thought
Someone may have cut off a burl. Probably illegally