Hi folks. I’m after some advice after some very sad issues.
Last night, a group of kids caused extensive damage to this beautiful ash tree. My friends in the forestry sector have confirmed it’s not something the tree will survive.
I just wondered whether anybody had experienced something similar and, if you have, what you’ve done to ‘fill the gap’ or try to remediate the loss.
I’m utterly devastated.
by NorthernBolts
33 Comments
First things first go to the police and get a police report and crime number. If you know the kids specifically that done it then even better .
Trees are very expensive to replace and it is your private property which has been destroyed. This is not something that should just be let off because they’re kids . Their parents will probably act like it’s no big deal but it is , police and solicitors letters should make that very clear .
Best of luck .
Edit- Wording
What in the name of God were they thinking? that is wanton vandalism. Looks like they went out of their way to kill the tree.
r/treelaw
Your mature tree is now dead.
I’d sue for replacement cost, for the loss in home value, for the increase in your utility bills.
Hm yeh this has been girdled pretty much.. kids are just ignorant fools arnt they.. I imagine they thought this was harmless. Or maybe they didn’t think. Real shame that
Small girdles can be bridged with some skill. This tree is gone I’m afraid. No chance. Fell and move on. Sorry
Jesus Christ an ash tree too. That’s even more depressing if it was healthy. They’re under so much pressure as it is.
That sucks.. id be so angry.. sorry this happened to you OP.. im not sure how id handle the emotions.
Majestic trees are a good source of mature trees, they have some real monsters you can buy but they run into the thousands if not tens of thousands.
Kids are retarded.. I hate to admit this but as a young teenager a group of friends and I did the same thing to a sycamore tree in our street (on council ground). We didnt have a clue what we where doing, it was just fun to play with our penknives. Years later as i grew up and relised just what we had gone and done. now as a horticulturist and a nursery owner im mortified!
point being, the kids need a strong lesson to what they have gone and done. you should also seek to recover the cost of replacement from the parents. but try and remember that they are just retarded kids who probably dont understand the magnitude of there stupidity.
How horrible. What a nice old tree.
Could you put the bark back on and wrap around some clear plastic wrap to the tree?
I have two outside that were girdle by the 10 year old neighbour with a hammer. Another neighbour took pictures and was accused on social media by the mother of being a paedophile as her boy was out having fun. It’s ridiculous
Gosh that’s awful 😕
Don’t approach the kids or parents alone. Mainly for the sake of witnesses. Partly because people are also nuts.
It’s going to be expensive to have it felled and removed. It’s now dangerous and a matter of time until bits start falling off it
This seems to be a new game. Never known kids do it before, but on the new build estate we lived at, kids did this to most of the new trees planted in the park area. One kid in particular. Always carried a knife but his mother didn’t believe any of it.
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Once you’ve lodged a record with the police, have the tree valued by a consulting arborist under CAVAT if it’s close to the street and prominent for replacement purposes. Plus cost of removal, disposal, replacement and ongoing establishment costs.
Could you not apply that stuff folks put onto open branches after cutting back? Might give it a chance to stop disease? Or is there something I’m not aware of when some of the bark is removed from the base? I garden but I don’t tree so much
r/kidsarefuckingstupid
There’s absolutely no saving this tree.
Sorry that’s happened to a tree you enjoy. I’m sure the kids don’t realise the gravity of what they’ve done
nothing you can do as it’s not your property. report to council/police and move on. hopefully it doesn’t fall down when it dies. keep an eye on it and keep reporting to the council to maintain this tree as it dies to stop your stuff getting damaged
Death penalty !
I see what you mean, just hard to comprehend that a huge tree like that is going to die
What on earth happened?
I am so sorry this has happened to you!
Kids these days are getting so much more violent and destructive than they were in our teens – they don’t seem to have anywhere else to go. We have had the same kid break 34 new trees on the estate next to ours, jumped the fences and ruined people’s allotment including pouring salt on their plants, letting their hens out, then keying cars on the entire street… and its the same group of teens, with no one to stop them. And everyone seems to have a similar story these days. And most shocking of all, they are barely into puberty – 14/15ish.
I believe you can use healthy branches to create a bridge between the girdle. Wrap the base with a textile and wrap in healthy twigs from the same tree
Looks like it wasn’t kids and was someone either paying kids or pretending it was kids. You don’t randomly bare the bottom of a treet in a manner that will make it die. Someone has done or paid someone else to do this, its very specific. and meticulous. Someone looked this up and I doubt kids looked up “how to remove a large tree in the next 5 years without property issues”
That’s so sad. Stupid fu king kids. Hope they’re caught.
Sorry 🙁
Post in r/treelaw as well
Parents should face jail if their kids break the law.
Currently there’s no incentive for them to do anything about it. Result – every generation is full of more louts and vandals than the last.
People are awful! So sorry this is happening!
Why the fuck would anyone do that?
Little fuckers – that poor tree – vandalism is annoying and shit but doing it to a living thing is beyond that – I’d be so upset too