Arborist consultation: what should I ask?

[PurplePotato]

I won a consultation with an arborist!

My mom and I went to the annual opening of the greenhouse at my local nursery and they had a bunch of local businesses in and raffles. I won a consultation with an arborist. I need this! We've been considering booking something like this.

I want to come up with a list of questions and I want to make sure I'm not missing something obvious. So far my list is:

-can the big oak in the back be saved?
-what kinds of pine trees should I replace my dying ones with
-what would the best decorative trees be for some screening in the back corner

I have a TON of trees. Oaks, other large things, many pines, many flowering, and some really cool short ones with red leaves.

Any other questions I'm missing? What would you want to ask?

[Anne]

Congratulations. I think my first question would be - what fruit, nuts, or other eddible landscaping can I grow here? But I sometimes overthink with my stomach.

[mrswaz]

DH used to own a tree service. He says to ask for a specific diagnosis on what is wrong with your oak tree. Find out if it's something that could spread to your other oak trees (like oak wilt disease). If it's something that spreads, you'll want an estimate for removal, which would hopefully spare the rest of the oaks in your yard.

He also says to ask about the dying pine trees as well- is there a correlation among your dying trees, something that needs to be corrected with soil amenities.

Since it's a free consulation, see if he'll give you a landscape value of your trees. If you have too many trees in a yard, it can detract from the value of your home- likewise with too few trees. Getting the landscape value can help you determine if you want to have some removed, or add a few more in strategic locations.

Also have the arborist look at the tree structure of all the trees in the yard to single out weak trees, and reduce possible risk of branches blowing off in a storm. He'll probably point out trees that could use a good pruning to trim away dead or weak branches.

An arborist normally gets between 100-125 an hour for a consultation, and a certified arborist should know tree health, so tap into that and get your money's worth!

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask and I'll pass them along to DH. He's always looking for an excuse to talk trees!

[PurplePotato]

DH used to own a tree service. He says to ask for a specific diagnosis on what is wrong with your oak tree. Find out if it's something that could spread to your other oak trees (like oak wilt disease). If it's something that spreads, you'll want an estimate for removal, which would hopefully spare the rest of the oaks in your yard.

He also says to ask about the dying pine trees as well- is there a correlation among your dying trees, something that needs to be corrected with soil amenities.

Since it's a free consulation, see if he'll give you a landscape value of your trees. If you have too many trees in a yard, it can detract from the value of your home- likewise with too few trees. Getting the landscape value can help you determine if you want to have some removed, or add a few more in strategic locations.

Also have the arborist look at the tree structure of all the trees in the yard to single out weak trees, and reduce possible risk of branches blowing off in a storm. He'll probably point out trees that could use a good pruning to trim away dead or weak branches.

An arborist normally gets between 100-125 an hour for a consultation, and a certified arborist should know tree health, so tap into that and get your money's worth!

If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask and I'll pass them along to DH. He's always looking for an excuse to talk trees!

Thank you! We know what the problem is with the oak and pines.

The oak is huge and on a slope. No one ever built a retaining wall for it and it is slowly leaning and falling. We've had it looked at once and they said there's nothing to be done for it, it is too far over. We think it would be good to get a second opinion.

The pines are along the driveway - under some other oaks. So they end up getting too much shade. I'm hoping for a suggestion of a more shade tolerant variety.

I know we have tons that need a good trim. Not sure if any others need to come out but those are great questions.

[Kay Henderson]

Your comment, "I have a TON of trees. Oaks, other large things, many pines, many flowering, and some really cool short ones with red leaves," leads me to believe that you are not sure of the species of many of your trees. Perhaps it would be helpful to ask (and write down) what they are. Then, at your leisure, you can learn more about caring for them.

Good luck!

Kay

[Gumbeaux]

If you were a tree what kind of tree would you be?