Is this pine dead?

[2000ssm6]

I'm not sure if this is the right section but here goes. Mods can move if it needed.

This is a pretty big pine that was hit by lighting about 3 months ago. The top was fried and it looks like the tree is split down the middle. Sap is coming out from every crack and the base is covered. I just wanted to know if it is a safety issue because I would rather leave it up. It looks like all the green needles would turn brown after a few months...

It could demolish our house if it fell/broke the wrong way. Let me know if ya'll need more pics.

 

[Sprig]

Off the hip here, looks like a ponderosa pine? It does appear to be split indeed but I am not sure how resilient those are to that sort of trauma, some of the oldest trees on the planet are of those variety so they probably take quite a beating, dunno, I know that the balsam pines up here are of a sensitive sort and it doesn't take much to kill them, people attaching fencing with staples seems the biggest reason. In your case, because it poses a danger to your home, I'd be keeping a close eye on it for signs of die-back and maybe get a good arborist to have a climb and look-see how bad that split really is. Just from the pics it appears the split directs the top away from the building, hard to tell. As we all know some trees can recover quite well from lightning hits and will strengthen other parts to compensate, others will die of slow shock, split, rot, become a hazard. I'm not an arborist by any means, not a pro, just my feeling on this. Having kids and critters around, proximity to your domicile, power lines, septic fields, etc. etc. should be factored in while assessing this victim, my gut tells me you may lose it.
Do let us know how it goes and I'm sure some of the real pros will have advice to offer soon enough.
Just my bitty 0.02$ worth for the afternoon wind storm (man its blowin' here bigtime!)

and good luck!

Serge

 

[(WLL)]

is this tree dead?

not yet but should be removed with extra care. tree is very dangerous shows root loss but most important it has internal cracks all through out climbing i would not even consider.

 

[Mitchell]

No expert on Lightning

We get so few lightning strike around here I do not have much of a chance to examine them. Having said that the few that I have seen [all firs] are doing fine. I suspect the spiral nature of the wound allows the tree to retain strength.

 

[Themadd1]

I say leave it... The top looks like it would fall away from your house. You probably wont be hanging out under it because of the sap so just keep an eye on it. In the spring look it over and see if it has any die back. You put down on your profile eastern/western NC, which one is this tree located? A ton of snow might be cause for concern but not likely in those areas.

 

[2000ssm6]

Thanks for the replies guys!! I'm located at the bottom of NC, not really in the middle but close. Laurinburg, Scotland Co.

I'm not sure what die back is but since the strike only one limb has died and one was blown off from the voltage, both at the top. I don't know the species either but we have several of the same kind of pine in the yard. I have a pro that said he would look at putting a rope in the top. I feel confident that I could fell it with a rope tied myself but will wait for him to say. The backhoe as a felling guide may be a bad idea if it splits.

Are the pics working anymore??

 

[joesawer]

The tree is a southern yellow pine, of the loblolly or slasher variety. They are very hardy if they get enough water.
If you want to keep the tree give it more time. I suspect that if it was dead it would be brown all over, but that depends on the temp and moisture avaliable. I have cut that type of tree that was dead and the trunk allready starting to stain but the needles were still green. I am not claiming that it will live I am just saying that it is too early to say. If you just need an excuse to cut it well you have one, but if it was mine I would wait untill it browned over or started showing significant needle lose to the undamaged limbs, or beetle infestation.

 

[Sprig]

Thanks for the replies guys!! I'm located at the bottom of NC, not really in the middle but close. Laurinburg, Scotland Co.

I'm not sure what die back is but since the strike only one limb has died and one was blown off from the voltage, both at the top. I don't know the species either but we have several of the same kind of pine in the yard. I have a pro that said he would look at putting a rope in the top. I feel confident that I could fell it with a rope tied myself but will wait for him to say. The backhoe as a felling guide may be a bad idea if it splits.

Are the pics working anymore??

Die back would, imo, mean branches dying from the outer tips inwards, some is just normal, lots means the tree is in decline. In my previous post I said ponderosa, I actually meant scotch pine, to the best of me I think they both have longish needles and from what I've seen fairly tough. Looks like a pretty straight forward drop if that is whats needed, don't wait for it to become totally dead though due to widow-maker hazards. By roping it did you mean to help direct the fall or cinching up the split for healing? Just curious.

More pics are welcome too!



Serge

^^What Joe said too! (typin' slow today lol)

 

[2000ssm6]

Die back would, imo, mean branches dying from the outer tips inwards, some is just normal, lots means the tree is in decline. In my previous post I said ponderosa, I actually meant scotch pine, to the best of me I think they both have longish needles and from what I've seen fairly tough. Looks like a pretty straight forward drop if that is whats needed, don't wait for it to become totally dead though due to widow-maker hazards. By roping it did you mean to help direct the fall or cinching up the split for healing? Just curious.

More pics are welcome too!



Serge

The main reason for the rope would be a guide to fell. I'm thinking it may become a widow maker from the looks of the split. I know the hoe would not have a problem pushin' it the right way but I don't wanna die right yet. If it needs to come down, I figured the ropes and wedges should get-r-done. I may end up getting a huge Cat 320 track hoe out too.

 

[beaverb01]

I see a lot of brown throughout the canopy that should not be there. Typically, around here, lightning peels off the bark down to the cambium. This hurts the tree, but i would say you have a 50/50 chance if it doesn't show anymore brown (die-back). Looks like you have plenty of room for felling and the weight of the tree is away from the house by the looks of the pics. Get a rope on it, notch it and take out the slack plus a little tension. Put in the back cut slowly and when getting within 3 inches or so of the apex, stop and tension the rope some more. Watch the top of the tree and you should see it move at this point. If all looks good, continue the back cut up to about an inch of the apex and tell the driver to pull a little more. If the curf opens up, pull her on over. A couple of important tips: use rope of at least 7000# break strength, truck must be 4X4, and if you don't know how to judge where the top of the tree will land when it falls, skip all of the above and let a pro do the job.

Beaver

 

[joesawer]

The main reason for the rope would be a guide to fell. I'm thinking it may become a widow maker from the looks of the split. I know the hoe would not have a problem pushin' it the right way but I don't wanna die right yet. If it needs to come down, I figured the ropes and wedges should get-r-done. I may end up getting a huge Cat 320 track hoe out too.

I might be able to fly out from CA and cut it for what it would cost to bring in a Cat 320.
If you cut it yourself, watch for the splits and cracks that are common to lightening strike trees. What the corners of your hinge, and make sure that they are sound.
I still think that it has a good chance of surviving.

 

[2000ssm6]

I might be able to fly out from CA and cut it for what it would cost to bring in a Cat 320.
If you cut it yourself, watch for the splits and cracks that are common to lightening strike trees. What the corners of your hinge, and make sure that they are sound.
I still think that it has a good chance of surviving.

LOL on the Cat. A good friend has one that owe's me a favor.

I'm not doing any cutting 'til I hear from the pro.

 

[Fireaxman]

We see a lot of lightning strikes down here on our loblollies. That looks like a pretty direct strike, not just a side strike. The strike alone would not kill it if it was getting plenty of water, but for the last couple of years the IPS beetles have been so bad they have killed just about every loblolly that took a strike.

Do you climb? IPS beetles start in the crown. SPB more middle to crown. These two are usually fatal once they get started in a tree damaged that badly. I find Black Turpintine beetles more at the base. They are not usually fatal by themselves, but by the time they show up in a lightning damaged tree the IPS and/or SPB's have usually already written the eulogy up top.

You could put a rope in that one pretty easily and check it out. If you see frass, pitch tubes, and little round holes, get it down before the beetles move in to neighboring trees. Since they feed on live cambium, by the time the tree turns brown IPS and SPB beetles have already moved out into neighboring trees. You can also scrape off a little bark in an infested area and catch a few of the little brown bastards on a piece of tape.

 

[treeseer]

yes it's a loblolly, pinus taeda. you have at least one pitch glob from spb. I live an hour and a half north of you near sanford but you don't need me. to really protect the tree you gotta kill the bugs. attached is an article about trees and lightning.

 

[2000ssm6]

yes it's a loblolly, pinus taeda. you have at least one pitch glob from spb. I live an hour and a half north of you near sanford but you don't need me. to really protect the tree you gotta kill the bugs. attached is an article about trees and lightning.

Sanford eh? Nice to meet ya neighbor! I work in southern pines...

I'll read the bug article thanks!!

Thanks for the pix Fireaxman! You guys really know a tree, very interesting. I saw the tree get hit because my computer room has a window right across from it. It looked like a big light saber sword ripped right down the middle, very cool to see at night.:jawdrop: :jawdrop: :jawdrop: