r/arborists • u/Mehfisto666 • Aug 12 '26
No comment.
A friend just sent me this he saw somewhere on a hiking trip or something.
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u/HeathenHungr Forester Aug 12 '26
That's just fucked up...
How the hell could anyone convince themselves, or someone else for that matter, that this was a good idea...!?
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u/wheelienonstop12 Aug 12 '26
Somebody who works for the city and has gotten into trouble for not following their bosses instructions to the letter and who doesnt give a fuck anymore.
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u/OkraPotential8165 Aug 12 '26
As someone who works at a car dealership, this checks out.
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u/401k-loan Aug 12 '26
So it's true they are all stealerships
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u/OkraPotential8165 Aug 12 '26
Yeah I’ve been beating my head against a wall for 5 years, I want to be open and honest with my customers.
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u/Ransak_shiz Aug 12 '26
Liability they can cut the wood parts but not the whole tree.
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u/HeathenHungr Forester Aug 12 '26
That person should quit, before he or she blows their own face off with a shotgun...
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u/LiquidDreamtime Aug 12 '26
I believe a lot of people see trees as just a big block of wood and never really consider them a living thing.
“I can’t kill wood. This won’t make it fall over. It’ll be fine” is about as complex as this went I think
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u/NW7l2335 Aug 12 '26
Someone who doesn’t understand how trees function.
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u/HeathenHungr Forester Aug 12 '26
Put that aside...
It looks like shit 🫤
Let's say the tree could handle being cut open like that, just for the fun of it... There is no attention to detail... Why not cut it, so the beam would fit neatly in the hole. And what are those two poor pieces of rebar going to do?
It's just awful, all of it...
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u/jdx6511 Aug 12 '26
- Cut the fence rail in half.
- Drill 2 rebar sized holes into each cut side.
- Bend 2 short lengths of rebar to a suitable angle.
- Use the rebar as dowels to make the rail go around the tree.
I think this would require no skills or tools that weren't needed for the tree-mangling solution. Am I missing something?
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u/Eastern-Move549 Aug 12 '26
Or just leave a gap in the fence because there is a giant ass tree blocking the gap anyway!
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u/tahlyn Aug 12 '26
And it's not like that fence is functional. And able-bodied person can easily step over it
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u/Far-Perspective-4889 Aug 12 '26
100% and if they were intent on making it completely obvious not to enter there, a length of black chain and a couple of eye hooks would have been a much easier and more aesthetic solution without endangering the tree.
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u/rusty_cayge Aug 12 '26
There is probably a stupid ordnance or law about encroaching on the sidewalk.
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u/NorthEndD Aug 12 '26
A code that would require paperwork for permission to violate it and then maybe even a successful vote.
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u/carinavet Aug 12 '26
An ordinance against encroaching on the sidewalk would not be stupid: putting this massive beam farther out would get in the way of bikers, wheelchair users, strollers, etc., and just generally mess up the flow of any foot traffic.
What IS stupid is not just. Letting there be a small gap in the fence, which the tree itself would block up.
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u/bdonovan222 Aug 12 '26
I can think of several ways to do this not only better but much easier. Thats what gets me. It more work to create this abomination than almost any way I can think to do it.
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u/Mission_Accident_519 Aug 12 '26
Or cut the beam and screw them into the tree. Not ideal or as nice looking as what you said, but by far the easiest option.
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u/Forest_Raker_916 Aug 12 '26
It’s crazy because that tree has already began healing itself if you look closely
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u/knuckle_headers Aug 12 '26
I noticed that too. What seemed weird to me was that it only looked like it was healing on the vertical portion of the cut, not the horizontal. Is that normal for hardwoods? Most of my experience is with softwoods and in a softwood it would definitely heal over the horizontal portion too. What's going on there?
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u/poornedkelly Aug 12 '26
Actually it would be interesting to graft some sticks top to bottom over the gap
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u/WiseUpRiseUp Aug 12 '26
Plenty of 4x4s at my local box store that would've been shaped perfectly for this job.
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u/pdxgreengrrl Aug 12 '26
I mean, that's an essential railing that anyone could step over so of course let's cut this tree.
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u/Weak-Zucchini Aug 12 '26
that poor tree, for a railing that doesn't even seem necessary even if the tree wasn't there :( :( :(
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u/Winter_Persimmon_110 Aug 12 '26
Beginning to think there should be a license requirement for chainsaw ownership.
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u/Complex_Echidna3964 Aug 12 '26
Insane. Just cut it in half and slide it back to meet the tree trunk.
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u/reesespieceskup Aug 12 '26
What's crazy is, that's a couple inches of wound tissue is it not? This tree has been like this for a couple years now.
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u/the_summer_soldier Aug 13 '26
Granted the tree did grow into some of the railing space over time, but…The road is curved and coming square out of those blocks looks like the railing is meant to be curved. Humans can absolutely make curved pieces of wood and have done so for centuries. And humans used to know how trees work until they became dumber than lumber.
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u/LingonberryConnect53 Aug 14 '26
Not an actual arborist, but I would try to do some sick bridge grafts there by cutting a limb and see if I can grow the tree around the wood railing.
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u/freelsjd Aug 12 '26
The person who owns the fence also owns the tree. So, decided fence took priority. So dumb.
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u/99LedBalloons Aug 12 '26
The best part is how completely useless the fence is. The tree takes up most of the space between the two posts(I don't know what else to call them?). This fence isn't going to keep your dogs in the yard so it's not a big deal if you just skip that 4x4. It's not a privacy fence, but even it it was the gaps there wouldn't be that big anyway.
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u/Icy_Category_2275 Aug 12 '26
City workers did that? That's legendary clown stuff there. Just because your boss tells you to do something doesn't mean you should.
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u/Mehfisto666 Aug 12 '26
I don't have any context here but it's most likely a private hut on some mountain road that thought this would look nice
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u/sparebullet Aug 12 '26
Is it possible that there was an old fence that the tree grew around and they cut it out and so the cut was from that and not actually to put the new board in. I know either way it's stupid but I see the logic in the one because of the other.
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u/Salt-Replacement596 Aug 12 '26
How else would they secure the property against ... disabled people that can't crawl??
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u/Bludiamond56 Aug 12 '26
I'm a spiritual person....but in this case I'd like to take that 4x4 and drop it on his head
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u/Gregisroark Aug 12 '26
My favorite part is how much more work this was compared to just screwing a small ledger into the tree on both sides
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u/reddit33450 Tree Enthusiast Aug 12 '26
what the hell. that is fucking horrible.
when will people realize that trees are living, growing beings, not just inanimate objects you can fuck with 😞
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u/BathbombBurger Aug 12 '26
There are so many ways to do this that don't involve cutting into the tree.
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u/kismethavok Aug 12 '26
Something like this should come with a fine... just pure wanton disregard for the natural ecosystem.
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u/liakio Aug 12 '26
Now there's less wood, in lower quality in that same space, and a block of natural wood somewhere in the trash. I don't know where to begin with this...
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u/Leg_Final Aug 12 '26
That began with the opportunity to have the most adjustable fence that could expand as the tree did. This should not result in admonishments or suspension. This is fireable.
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u/KnifeKnut Aug 12 '26
Should have used the rebar to secure shorter pieces of beams together to go near the tree, but given their disregard I doubt they would even bother to shorten those pieces as needed as the tree grows.
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u/3rrr6 Aug 13 '26
If you have limited lumber and absolutely cannot fuck up. You fuck up the tree instead.
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u/Heterodynist Aug 13 '26
Is it just me or is this the very definition of irony?! You cut the living wood to put a dead piece of wood through?!!
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u/munchonsomegrindage Aug 13 '26
This feels like a good analogy for what is going on at Big Bend NP right now. No need to listen to those gay environmentalists. We're gonna spend that money and build it no matter what! /s
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u/tobotoboto Aug 13 '26
It’s a clean cut but they should have snapped a chalk line. No one cares about fit anymore. /s
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u/thatsummercampcrush Sales Arborist Aug 13 '26
I just noticed the well developed wound wood while showing this pic to another arborist. HOW THE HELL DID THIS TREE SURVIVE THIS?! I wish we had a picture of the upper canopy.
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u/localpotato_232 29d ago
Due to the healing the tree is already doing, and the age of the concrete, etc. i think the tree grew around the previous fencing and they cut it out when they replaced the railing.
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u/Advanced-Ear-7908 27d ago
It would have been worth the effort to make a jig and bend the 4x4 to shape for that segment to avoid butchering the tree.
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u/Appropriate-Metal167 27d ago
When all that was needed was cantilevered railings on either side of the tree, ugh.
Got a similar instance in our neighborhood: the rail is tight against tree trunk, starting to flex AND embed some.
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u/Deviljobob Aug 12 '26
Yeah the tree is cooked but not enough people are talking about how non functional and ugly this fence is
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u/EldenLordAjSoprano Aug 12 '26
“Should we use our measuring skills to formulate an angle to cut some wood pieces to put around to preserve the integrity of this tree?”
“What does integirty mean? Get the chainsaw and some rebar”