Tree Freed - 406 Anthwyn Rd

This was the tree that provided the original call to action. We heard from a neighbor that the canopy had been surveyed by drone from above while surveying other vegetation on the street, and there was still hope here. But when you looked up at the tree from the base, it seemed like the ivy had already won the fight. The ivy had matured to a point where it almost looked like a different plant, and the lower ivy branches held themselves out 3 feet over the sidewalk from the trunk matching the thickness of the tree's branches. Here's a marked up photo from google street view from last June. (also note the smaller tree to the right starting to be attacked)

We started to remediate the ivy mid-October and it took several rounds of work.  Initially we trimmed back the smaller vines until we could find the tap roots underneath. On multiple later passes, using a tree branch saw, we managed to cut gaps in the multiple tap roots and finally formed a full gap ring around the tree.

We were lucky that the owner of this property was supportive of doing this work, and even mentioned that they had already lost a tree a few years ago on the other corner of the property. Sometimes it only takes a knock on the door and a quick explanation to get permission to remediate!

Within days, the ivy started to wilt and leaves poured to the ground with the Fall weather. Keeping an eye on the tree, it seemed that more leaves fell from the ivy than the tree itself, evidence this was a overdue remediation. Unfortunately, the ivy was so advanced that it will take quite a few months of ugliness and drying before the ivy starts to dry and fall from the tree.  

We checked the tree out today, about 2 months later and this is how it looks:

The smaller tree on the right is recovering quite well as the vines were still small and are already mostly dry and about to fall off. The tree trunk on the left is becoming visible again even though there are still some green ivy leaves at the very top. The photo in the middle shows you close up how thick those bottom ivy branches were, and it might be necessary to come back for one more round with a pole trimmer and attempt to cut some of that off so that it looks better and doesn't become a lattice for another ivy climbing attack.

We can hope that with the coming spring, this tree will breathe and rebound without the weight and continued strangling of the ivy. It is better to have a short term ugly tree, than have a dead tree falling over and landing on utility lines, cars, and causing property damage!

Learn more about the ivy warriors mission by clicking here!