Aunty Enigma
New member
personally know that you really do? Or when would you know that you care? (Please share a description). Some might think the following event to be insignificant – but do you sympathise? (Extra Qs: It is not essential but if you're knowledgeable about trees, do you think the tree I describe below will recover in a few months or next year? Do you know its botanical or generic name?)
Background: I'm currently feeling some grief for a tree with green leaves throughout the year. Within the last 2½ weeks, it was rapidly growing clusters of pink on white flowers because it's Spring. The flowers were beautiful to me. Its leafy branches served as a privacy screen over the rails against any passerby who might – but haven't, as far as I know – look up at my balcony from the road. Possums used its strong and flexible leafy branches to climb onto my balcony on some nights. It gave extra privacy from neighbours across the road who are also above ground level, and took away the view of the ugly building on the raised corner of this road, that is part of a hill. It even used to muffle the traffic noise from a main road.
Yesterday I came home to a stark view from my balcony. Workmen had chainsaw most of its fanning branches leaving a gaunt tree that looks like it only points skywards. They even lopped off many branches of the purple Jacaranda trees on this property. Some might call me crazy for thinking that the limb removal hurt the tree because its flowering branches were sawed off during its most active growth period. Curling bits of bark peeling away from the diameter of some open limbs show that it was a rough and fast job by the loppers. The tree was not a threat to the roof or the building; it wasn't dying and at risk of toppling onto someone or a car during a storm; its roots weren't cracking foundations; and it wasn't growing into power lines as those are on the other side of the street. This type of tree, I suspect, hardly poses a threat. I'm disappointed by the body corporate and majority owner whose position is, “We'll manage the property as we see fit.” The same people who monitor all residents' water usage.
I don't know its generic name but I do know it isn't Sakura. An acquaintance says that it is an imported Asian tree adaptable to this sub-tropical climate. A “Baughinia” he says - but he could be wrong on the spelling and name. Having moved to this address a few months ago, I didn't know that it is a flowering tree; so I was even more delighted when buds and then blossoms came out recently. I'm glad I appreciated those leafy branches and light pink flowers everyday that I saw them even though I didn't know it would be cut off. The tree, the possums, and daytime birds have all been robbed. Many green trees are needed in our car-dominant, polluted cities and suburbs. I miss the full beauty of that tree. I worry that it is in pain. I'm glad that it rained steadily the first night of its shock: maybe the fresh water might soothe the roughly sawn limbs. I even said a prayer for that tree: that it would heal, recover and grow back its branches next year out of reach of those gardeners/tree loppers.
The above nonessential tree-lopping event, insignificant to some, confirms to me that too many people still give lip service to doing environmentally-friendly things or caring about ecology. I certainly don't mean that being an environmental-Nazi about policing other people counts. (Tuesday 13 October 2009)
Background: I'm currently feeling some grief for a tree with green leaves throughout the year. Within the last 2½ weeks, it was rapidly growing clusters of pink on white flowers because it's Spring. The flowers were beautiful to me. Its leafy branches served as a privacy screen over the rails against any passerby who might – but haven't, as far as I know – look up at my balcony from the road. Possums used its strong and flexible leafy branches to climb onto my balcony on some nights. It gave extra privacy from neighbours across the road who are also above ground level, and took away the view of the ugly building on the raised corner of this road, that is part of a hill. It even used to muffle the traffic noise from a main road.
Yesterday I came home to a stark view from my balcony. Workmen had chainsaw most of its fanning branches leaving a gaunt tree that looks like it only points skywards. They even lopped off many branches of the purple Jacaranda trees on this property. Some might call me crazy for thinking that the limb removal hurt the tree because its flowering branches were sawed off during its most active growth period. Curling bits of bark peeling away from the diameter of some open limbs show that it was a rough and fast job by the loppers. The tree was not a threat to the roof or the building; it wasn't dying and at risk of toppling onto someone or a car during a storm; its roots weren't cracking foundations; and it wasn't growing into power lines as those are on the other side of the street. This type of tree, I suspect, hardly poses a threat. I'm disappointed by the body corporate and majority owner whose position is, “We'll manage the property as we see fit.” The same people who monitor all residents' water usage.
I don't know its generic name but I do know it isn't Sakura. An acquaintance says that it is an imported Asian tree adaptable to this sub-tropical climate. A “Baughinia” he says - but he could be wrong on the spelling and name. Having moved to this address a few months ago, I didn't know that it is a flowering tree; so I was even more delighted when buds and then blossoms came out recently. I'm glad I appreciated those leafy branches and light pink flowers everyday that I saw them even though I didn't know it would be cut off. The tree, the possums, and daytime birds have all been robbed. Many green trees are needed in our car-dominant, polluted cities and suburbs. I miss the full beauty of that tree. I worry that it is in pain. I'm glad that it rained steadily the first night of its shock: maybe the fresh water might soothe the roughly sawn limbs. I even said a prayer for that tree: that it would heal, recover and grow back its branches next year out of reach of those gardeners/tree loppers.
The above nonessential tree-lopping event, insignificant to some, confirms to me that too many people still give lip service to doing environmentally-friendly things or caring about ecology. I certainly don't mean that being an environmental-Nazi about policing other people counts. (Tuesday 13 October 2009)