Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
lellie_gw

Sure is quiet in my yard...thanks Asplundh!

lellie
17 years ago

Welp...Asplundh came through my backyard that butts up to my neighbors, and whacked everything even remotely near the power lines.

This was done by order of our Island, of course, in preparation of Hurricane Season, which is right around the corner...ugh!

I KNOW it had to be done...(or did it???)...but sheesh!...leave sumpthin' for the critters!

I wonder how many birds, squirrels, coons and snakes were displaced.

Sad...real sad...

Comments (7)

  • goldenpond
    17 years ago

    It is sad and most of them just don't know what the impact is.My dad called because the neighbor across the street had Cabbage Palms trimmed and a nest of baby squirrels lay on the ground.He begged me to come to get them.I went over and he had them still in the nest on his table.Their eyes were not even open!The Palms had been scalped.I could see the mother squirrel frantically looking for her babies so I took the nest over to the scalped tree.The neighbor came out and yelled I HATE squirrels and pointed his finger at them and said BANG BANG.I decided to take them to a different neighbor and set the nest of babies in the crotch of an oak.Then Dad and I sat back and watched.Finally after all her searching she found the nest and took them to safety.
    I keep a flier on NO HARSH PRUNING from the ext office.I make copies and hand them to tree trimmers. It explains why overpruning damages Sabal Palms in the long run.
    How taking off green fronds zaps their energy source and also hits on how useful Sabals are to wildlife.
    I had to have 4 large oaks removed due to Hypoxylon Oak canker. When I went to pay the guy I handed one to him and said Promise to read this? He looked at the picture of the Sabal Palm and said now which tree is this? Scary!? Glad he only worked on my DEAD trees!

  • lellie
    Original Author
    17 years ago

    Oh! The poor babies!...and I can't imagine the dreadful anxiety of the momma.
    OK...maybe to some, they're only squirrels, but they ARE, afterall, living creatures...and deserve respect.
    Oops!...hope I don't start a debate here. :(

    A neighbor of mine had three lovely, well-established Olive Trees in his yard. They went down to Sarasota for the day, only to return after Asplundh had been there.
    They whacked one complete side off, which wasn't even near the lines, damaging it to such an extreme that the folks had to totally remove it.
    Asplundh returned and cut it down for them, but they left the stump.

    I've heard talk of a project for installing all our lines on the Island, underground...this should've been done long ago and I'm all for it!
    Sure would be safer during storms...they're just SO unsightly, too!

  • terryr
    17 years ago

    Around these parts, you can contact the town if you have trees into the power lines and request that you're notified of when Asplundh will be in your neighborhood. Then you can make sure you're home at that time and they don't desecrate the trees. I actually found the crew that does the trimming around our area to be quite accommodating. We had 2 cherries trees that a previous owner planted right under the power lines. I had already spoke to the town and had their o.k. to have them totally remove the trees. The day that they came was a rainy day and I walked out to make sure they knew to totally remove the trees. My husband asked me if I had asked them about some others in the front yard. I hadn't, because the town already told me that they were on our property, my problem to take down. My husband went out anyway, and sure enough, they took them down. Anything that was planted here was planted wrong or was an invasive species, so we've started over from scratch.

    You might want to check and see if you being notified is allowed where you are.

  • Elly_NJ
    17 years ago

    Ay, Lellie! So sad! People really are disconnected from nature and the consequences of their actions.

  • dirtgirl
    17 years ago

    Your neighbors might disapprove if you live in an area with "standards", but maybe you could make lemonade out of your lemons...start some brush piles with the tops and branches! Keeps that organic material out of your landfill, too.

    The damage is done, and while you wait for new trees to grow back you can still provide a bit of cover for many different kinds of wildlife with a few well-placed brush piles.

  • vonyon
    17 years ago

    good idea DG. Believe it or not we have a cemetary in a nearby town (old Yankee town on the ocean, too!) that is creating brush piles and leaving snags up. I thought the snags might be an accident until I saw the brush piles. The snags are gorgeous. The wood is bleached white from the weather.

  • melchiah420_hotmail_com
    13 years ago

    I hope you people understand and realize, Asplundh provides a free service to trim your trees away from power lines to keep your houses from losing power or burning to the ground due to a limb of the unmaintained tree. You do realize who would be billed if your tree caused the power outage don't you. The property owner. Not only for the owner of the tree, but any other houses in the area that might have had power knocked out. I dont think you have any idea how expensive restringing power lines can be. I have two suggestions, one; maintain your tree.. if you can't do it yourself, have another tree company come in and do it for you. Two; If your going to plant a tree, don't plant it near or under power lines. Ive even heard that some power companies will give an allowance/check for a new tree, after the other tree is removed.

Sponsored
HEMAX Construction Services & Landscaping, LLC
Average rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars34 Reviews
Innovative & Creative Landscape Contractors Servicing VA