|
Thu, May 26, 11 at 13:59
| One of the storms last night blew out the top of a huge Sweet Gum. It didn't fall on the house - it DID fall on a big chunk of garden. Destroyed a 20' Halesia diptera, Clethra alnifolia, a native azalea (can't remember which one), mulberry, Joe Pye, and an Oakleaf Hydrangea. I am in mourning for the Halesia. Yes, I know it didn't damage the house and no one was injured and I am grateful but I have been loving this Silverbell for years and will miss it deeply. And if the Sweet Gum eventually dies, I will lose a great deal of shade which a whole lot of Hellebores, Hosta, Bottlebrush Buckeye, etc depend on. sigh Linda |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
| You're lucky! Not your poor tree and the plants underneath. I have heard many stories of lightning strikes and property damage over the last few years.It's scarey and amazing what lightning can do. |
|
| I am so sorry for the loss of your Silverbell. We've had ours for just four years and love it so much. It's the tree we sprinkle with water on hot summer evenings so that the hummingbirds can take baths on those big leaves. And the bees! Is it possible that every single one of those blossoms are filled with bees? I would miss it terribly if something would happen to it. That wind last night was something else, wasn't it? |
|
| Linda: I feel your pain! ;-) We lost a couple of old sugar maples (the DH didn't realize they don't thrive in the deep South) several years ago and I've had to redo most of the front yard from shade plants to sun lovers. After the second tree died several years ago, we got a 15-20 foot willow oak to replace it. The man brought one of those trucks with the big four-blade scoop, dug a big hole and carried the dirt off in the scoop. Later he returned with the oak tree lying on top of the truck with the root ball in the scoop. He dropped it in the hole, which, of course, fit perfectly and that tree never missed a beat. We watered it the first summer and now it's probably 30' tall and looks like it's always been there. The azaleas under it got enough shade to survive and are thriving now. It wasn't cheap, but it wasn't nearly as expensive as I was afraid it would be. The savings on air conditioning on that side of the house made up for some of it. Sorry you lost the silverbell. The other things may be salvageable, but trees don't do "renewal pruning" well. |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Alabama Gardening Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.