This is a very hard day for me and I know I am getting overly emotional but just can’t seem to fight the tears off. When we returned from our trip to New York I noticed my oldest) Douglas Fir which is from old growth forest was shedding needles EVERYWHERE. Her “fir” was literally falling out by the wheelbarrow fulls.
This beautiful tree is one of 6 old growth firs on the property that provide shade and protection for my family as well as countless broods of owls, chickadees, Douglas squirrels, woodpeckers and hummingbirds etc etc etc. How many generations has this old girl ushered into the world!! The photo above shows the entry to my garden..the large trunk is my lovely lady!
I tried to put the inevitable out of my mind by last night was my last night being graced by her towering presence silouetted in the sunset. I had to do something to say goodbye so I set up a shrine with fresh picked flowers and incense and sat with my glass of wine in the garden and blubbered like a baby. I’m so hopeless!!!
Bling Bling was so overcome with sadness she wanted to hug the tree so I helped her up. You can see the weeping sap on the bark below Bling. It all happened so fast we still have no idea why the tree is dying
This single “tear” I photographed last spring on this very tree and was most likely the first sign we had a problem but firs do drip sap in the spring so we didn’t think a thing of it.
I asked the tree guys to leave a tall stump that is bistro table height providing she didnt’ die of disease. I wouldn’t want anything to spread to my other gentle giants!! This will be my special sitting place for years to come. This graceful lady will be with me always.
Farewell my special friend…this quote below is from 1938 when you were starting your golden years
“The oaks and the pines, and their brethren of the wood, have seen so many suns rise and set, so many seasons come and go, and so many generations pass into silence, that we may well wonder what “the story of the trees” would be to us if they had tongues to tell it, or we ears fine enough to understand.”
~Author Unknown, quoted in Quotations for Special Occasions by Maud van Buren, 1938
Sandra, You are such a kind soul that it is understandable you would be saddened by such a loss. It is a wonderful idea to have your tree stay in your garden with a new purpose.My heart is heavy too…my daughter is in NY and while I am so excited for her new adventure in life, I miss her terribly. I’m sending you a virtual hug, maybe it will help both of us… Lois
So sorry, Sandra–what a loss!
Sandra. I’m sooo sorry about your tree. I lost my 100 yr old oak tree this spring and was very sad also. There is new development in my neighborhood and they had to run power lines off our main pool. Law prevents them from running lines tru branches so they just cut it down. I was so angry!!
I commiserate with you, Sandra. I hope you are feeling better. Sometimes, it’s best to take them down. I, too, deeply love trees. I hug them, sit beneath them, marvel at them and meditate on nature. When I was a kid, I would climb to a tall bough of a mulberry tree and eat berries. Some of my favorite childhood memories are when I took long walks with my grand mom and aunt through the woods that surrounded her house and learned about the cycle of birth and death through nature. I cry when trees are pruned too severely, get cut/bruised and when they are felled. I think it is wonderful that you will keep a part of your beautiful tree as a fixture in your garden. Maybe the trunk will sprout. We’ve had trees that have done that. if it does sprout and it has not died of disease you could nurture the sprout and grow a baby from your beloved tree. We are doing that with several dogwood stumps that we found in our yard when we moved here. I wrote a story about my memories of grandmom and her woods, which was recently published in an herbal remedies book I edited, called Mama’s Home Remedies. If you’d like to see the story. Let me know. Blessings, Jan
I am so sorry! I can totally understand. We had a huge old catalpa tree out front and one day the power company came to the door and said they had to remove it. I sat in the house and cried when they cut it down. We have the oldest trees in our town in our backyard. Huge maples and oaks. If anything happenes to them I may have to be committed! Those trees have been through it all.
There is nothing worse for a gardener then loosing an old and trusty tree like that. I had a huge oak split in two about 2 years ago and I still go out and look at the stump and wish it were still with me.
I’m really bummed—I’ve seen this tree as well as all the trees in your yard. Such a sad day. I hope it didn’t have a nasty disease—that it was simply time. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Hi you guys!! Thank you all very very much for your sweet words of comfort. I sat in my front doorway the entire day taking photos of every stage of the tree removal. The foreman was SO nice and is even bringing my tree’s woodchips back into the yard to line my pathways again!!!! Is that the nicest thing.?? He knows how much I love my trees.
I kept 8 of the trunk “chunks” too to use a stools and tables around the garden. I’ll post pix tomorrow.
Thanks for telling me your stories about your own lost trees. It leave me feeling a little less like a nut case to know other get emotional over their trees too!
MS…I remember well when that oak came out. You were a mess too!!
omg…..im so sad. this brings back all my old tree friends and the memories each one left with me. my first was a large hackberry that the city removed, in spite of me and bob and all the neighbors holding hands around her. next was a huge poplar that shaded our whole front yard. she was part of a pair, and they both had to come down……but kept a big part of one to make a castle for birds. trees…….i adore them. you get to know each and every branch and who gets to live in which part. i have an ancient old maple in the back which is registered as one of the largest in MN. if she ever goes, i think i would hafta go with her. God bless you and your love for your forestry. i hurt for you tonite!!!!
Hi Sandy. We have most probably lost a beautiful walnut tree…the extension service has helped us try to save her and encouraged us to leave her until spring to see if there is any sign of life then. In the meantime, I look at her graceful bare limbs. The birds come to look and mourn the site of their former nests, acknowledging they will have to move on. The fluffy-tailed gray squirell braves the Chow Chows and crosses the lawn to check on the nuts that have helped him survive the winters…there are, of course, none. The afternoon Arizona sun now reaches through my kitchen windows, strong and harsh where it used to be muted and “speckled.” I am really missing my tree, too, but must daily watch it’s skeleton arms and continue a glimmer of hope for a sign of life. However, I must admit that you make me feel even worse, Sandy…I DIDN’T MAKE A SHRINE!!!!!
Kathe, I want to see photos of that glorious old tree!!!! I’ll post them on the blog if you like. What a treasure to have
Jan as sad as your tree story was you gave me a good chuckle about the shrine….a good way to start the morning. I needed that !!! LOL! It’s not too late to put up a tree shrine!! We saw them all over the place in Thailand. Maybe I should start a blog day called TREE Thursday where you all can submit pix of your special trees for me to post!
Oh my, what a heart breaker. It is so sad to loose these beautiful gifts of nature. Maybe a new youngster will spring up to follow her legacy. We just lost a beautiful tree out side the yoga studio where I go because of road construction. It was very old and we were all both angry and sad! Progress is often painful in the city!! I cherish each tree we have. So sorry. nm
Oh my, what a heart breaker. It is so sad to loose these beautiful gifts of nature. Maybe a new youngster will spring up to follow her legacy. We just lost a beautiful tree out side the yoga studio where I go because of road construction. It was very old and we were all both angry and sad! Progress is often painful in the city!! I cherish each tree we have. So sorry. nm
Hi Sandra,I just thought I would take a moment to say thank you again for the kind words towards our crew. It is our wish that more people would care for their trees the way you do. Our goal in the Arbor world is to educate the public as to how important our “urban trees” really are, and how decisions that one makes towards the health and care of them makes a difference not only to the property but also to the community they live in.Our only wish were that we could have prevented this loss of yours. Sometimes these things are beyond our control though.Thank you again for your trusting us to this massive undertaking in your AMAZING garden. -KevinNorthwest Tree Specialists
Sandy…i know i have a few pics of Desi near this tree. i will have bob stand at the base of the tree this weekend and take an upward looking pic. people just freak about this fat lady!!! she is sooooooooo big around.
Jan!!!!! you can still make a shrine. you can make whatever you want and place it in the ground like a stone, or on a post……whatever. there are so many ways you can remember that tree. and maybe the shrine will just be something that you keep in your heart and remember fondly now and then!!!!
I so agree Nan it’s very hard to see those reliable old trees come down. It’s the one thing in our day we can depend on is their strength as they tower over and protect us. I feel kind of vulnerable with my old girl gone in a weird way.
Kevin you ROCK!!! Not only do you take the time to do the job right but you took time out of your busy day to comment here. I am telling all of my garden clubs about you guys and plan to have you back soon to do some neatening up on the other trees.
Its such a breath of fresh air to see a business conducted with not only good sense and communication but most of all a business that has heart and soul. That’s a rare commodity my friend!! Thank you once again for all your hard work!! Sandra and Steve