Thursday 7 May 2009

Deathof a Tree.......



It was always a beautiful tree. I loved the way its roots had grown down like curvy oergan pipes. It had been in the Park for a long time and generations of people had tried to carve their names in the bark.



But alas, the powers that be have decided the tree is diseased and has to come down. A fungus, they say, and I must admit it has made a poor showing of coming into leaf this year.



But it is always such a shame when a great tree has to come down. Today, there is no chopping and sawing at its roots, and cries of "Timber!" as it falls. A nimble fellow sort of abseils up, and cuts bits off as he goes, finally coming down, taking the trunk off above his head, in pieces.

I still feel very sorry that such a lovely tree has to go.

17 comments:

Hollace said...

I hate to lose big old trees, too. Especially those familiar to our everyday view. Sometimes I feel angry when a shortsighted decision is made to take one out for "cosmetic" reasons, such as that it drops pine needles on the driveway, which was put under the existing tree in the first place...! Okay, I admit my fervor is caused by personal experience--my neighbor did that and wrecked my kitchen view!

Connie said...

If old trees could talk they would have lots of stories to tell - especially those which grow in neighborhoods. They can be so stately. Seeing them come down reminds us of the cycle of life for everything ...

awareness said...

I always mourn over losing big old trees....two of my favourites in my parent's backyard were gone the last time i visited them....i had spent many hours hanging off their branches when i was a child.

Gilly, have you read Shel Silverstein's book, The Giving Tree? Its a wonderful children's book...one of my favourites with a wonderful lesson tucked in it.

Gilly said...

As of this minute, tree is still standing, workers are busy taking down another tree!

Dana, no I've never met that book. I'll try and get hold of it.

theMuddledMarketPlace said...

hey, the rooms down there in the roots....

Greener Pastures--A City Girl Goes Country said...

I hate when trees get chopped down. It's been really hard for me living in the country and using a lot of wood heat because we have to chop some trees down. It always breaks my heart a little. One of my favorite stories is "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn."--trees can be like people--they somehow live on and give you hope.

Thanks for the real nice comment on my blog about my mom.

www.GreenerPastures--ACityGirlGoesCountry.blogspot.com

cottonreel said...

Hi Gilly . It,s cottonreel ,thanks for stopping by. I feel it doesn,t matter who we support as long as we try to show a little compassion. Sad about the tree but nothing stays the same ,in time everything changes. Thinking about it ,I almost lost my complete and well established garden to have the fence replaced

Gilly said...

Ah yes, Cottonreel! Putting a fence up seems to demand a lot of walking over everything with big boots! Hope your garden has recovered now!

Strawberry Jam Anne said...

I agree it is sad to see a mature tree felled. I feel for the tree and all the animal life and birds that were familiar with it. A x

Connie said...

I wanted to stop in today and wish you a Happy Mothers Day, but I am not sure you celebrate such a day - now that I think about it. Oh well, may you have a great day anyway!

sojourner said...

how sad that it has to be dismantled like a fake Christmas tree! A tree like that should be felled with an axe.

Diane said...

My Grandad was a woodman and felled plenty of tree's in his time, but he also planted plenty too. Every morning, I pass a wood that he planted all the tree's in around 1930. They have just started to thin some of these out now.

Anonymous said...

Oh me too...I love trees. They are wonderful. :)

Glennis said...

Such a shame. I'm never one to fight the legitimate loss of a tree, due to disease diagnosed by an arborist, but it's always sad to see.

My city has a group of citizens that are rabidly pro-tree/anti-arborist. We have a lot of exotic trees that were planted early in the 20th century, and are totally unsuitable for their locations, so my city is having a heck of a time taking them out in the face of protesters.

kenju said...

I am not usually a tree hugger, as they are called over here, but I do grieve for the big old trees when they have to be cut down.

Rainbow dreams said...

I love roots like that too, and loved to play over them in Herm on holiday - they were special.
It is sad when a tree comes down, but sometimes it is necessary. I hope they can plant something to replace it.

One Woman's Journey - a journal being written from Woodhaven - her cottage in the woods. said...

Thank you for visiting my journal.
What a beautiful header image is on your blog.