We’re on time this time. Writing to you from the past. I guess it technically always is, but further back this time.

This month’s newsletter is going to be an assortment of random stuff from November.

First:

I’m deep in writing two articles at once, but the finish line is in sight. Today will be my 8th consecutive day writing. That includes work-related stuff and non-work-related stuff.

Going to be submitting both articles to TCIA Magazine, but something tells me “An Argument Against Mechanization” and “The Market Demands Removal” won’t win any favors for their new editor. Luckily though, the former editor has filled in the new one, calling me ‘Provocative’. Which I happen to find quite flattering.

The editor gave me permission to write the articles, saying explicitly “don’t diss our advertisers”. I didn’t name any names, but I could certainly see advertisers not liking either lol.

Either way, if TCIA Magazine won’t publish either, you bet I will on the Tree First website. Rest assured you’ll get to see them. I’m thinking Jack and I can make a video discussing the argument against mechanization too.

Next:

Our third year pollarding these willows. Originally the client wanted us to shear them tight each year. Shearing sucks so we said no. Instead, they allow us to pollard them at the end of each year.

I find it interesting that the species doesn’t only sucker out from around the heading cuts. Finally got some good knuckles forming at the locations of the heading cuts; but growth emerges from all over.

A great form once its grown out! Looks full each time we pollard them. Much better than a topiary shape.

Thirdly:

Jake and Jack came up with a pretty cool build for ornamental props. We’re still ironing out the details, but we think we’re getting close.

The goal here is an adjustable prop. This way, each one doesn’t have to be made with a high degree of precision. The brace touching the tree itself is a hard padded and flexible rubber. Although it looks like it, it isn’t ‘grabbing’ the branch.

Once we get the build ironed out fully, we intend to share it so that you can prop some trees too.

If you’re interested in the build so far and would like to help, touch base with us.

And lastly:

Sam and I did an assessment on a pair of very-not-healthy Norway spruce trees in October.

Quite an interesting puzzle these trees. It isn’t often two of us are totally stumped. But unfortunately, I think that’s what will become of these two trees. The client is choosing to believe they are dormant and will re-leaf in spring time.

If spruce are determinate-growers (I don’t know if they are or not), meaning they preform most of following year’s tissue ahead of dormancy in the buds, there may actually be some tiny chance something happens next year.

But I’m not so confident about that. When we looked back at these trees in Google Street View, they began showing symptoms about 6 months prior; which would’ve been before they set buds for the year.

6 months is very rapid for a species in my region that doesn’t get bothered by much. While it is true we had an extraordinarily dry summer and autumn, these two trees were expressing visible symptoms before that. Perhaps multiple years of water deficit?

After some tissue sampling of some cores and of some stems/needles, the lab came back with nothing. No casts, no cytospora, nada.

Due to the uniformity, sort of thinking this was abiotic. No major recent environmental changes were evident, all the neighbors around the trees liked them too. Nobody is really suspected of killing ‘em intentionally. No sap-flows from beetle exits either.

Pretty much did the entire assessment process with two BCMA’s, had a PhD help with diagnosing the trees too. Came up with nothing.

The dryness certainly exacerbated things, no doubt. Perhaps certain trees are already in a state of hovering just above a critical point in their state of health. Many conifers hide their maladies (looking at you, arborvitae) until things have crossed that point.

Hovering just around that point of no return. Once the stresses have compounded finally too far, it expresses sudden and drastic symptoms. Maybe sudden to us, but perhaps not to them.

And it got more interesting! As I carried on through October and November I spotted more suddenly-dead spruce trees throughout my region:

Kind of a crumby picture, I know. The others I spotted weren’t client-owned trees; just ones I saw while driving around. This photo above is a blue spruce, which have a known litany of issues here. But two others I saw in passing were Norway spruce as well.

Maybe something broader is at work! Or maybe they’re just finnicky here? Need to think some more on it.

That is all for this month. And for the year! This is the last time we’ll speak in the newsletter till the next year.

Hopefully you all get long holidays.

Finish strong,

TF Forever