I must explain why we killed the magnificent silver maple tree in our yard. It’s gone, cut down, stump soon to be ground to bits. 

It was planted over a half century ago for quick shade and it grew dangerously large. The branches were soft and the roots of were shallow. We were advised to remove it before it plugged the sewer line. Due to their girth, the roots would be difficult to blast away. Not to mention, our sewer line to the street is PVC so the line being plugged would be a good distance away under the street. It might involve digging up the street!

For as long as I can remember, we had no interest in killing the tree.  But lately, I’d grown edgy about it and other things. Iowa is getting over a 4-year long drought.  Trees seek out sewers during droughts and can even pry open places where pipes meet. Tree roots grow in the winter, especially in mild winters as we’ve had lately. Invasive tree roots seek out sewer lines in the winter and they can cause pipes to break in the winter. I hate to favor a sewer line over a tree but the sewer was not my only concern about the tree.

 We didn’t prune it until it was elderly, not knowing this could give it a hollow spot or two in the trunk eventually.  If someone had pruned it when young, it would have maintained a smaller root volume. It was very close to the house and the driveway. The roots cracked a walkway. We didn’t plant it. My parents did when they owned the house, which we bought from them. I recall watching it grow over the years and thinking it was the equivalent of having a baby elephant. 

Part of the reason for removal was the worry about it falling on our house during bad weather. Even the Iowa legislature is admitting it, bad weather has accelerated, as scientists predicted. But instead of doing anything to prevent worse weather, the Iowa legislature has proposed tax free disaster savings accounts. I don’t need a tax break as much as I need them to take steps to keep us safe. I haven’t felt safe with them lately.

I saw danger not only of it dropping big branches but, we were told by an arborist, it was probably going to split down the middle someday. Why did he say this? It also had a lot of branching, along with knot holes fairly low down which meant, eventually, it was going to weaken. Silver maples are among the trees most likely to fall in a storm.  If it was in the way back of the yard, it would be tempting to let nature take its course, but it wasn’t. It was in the front yard, closer to the house than the street. The house is old but it’s well-built. The house won out. 

The tree had been part of my life for so long, something always there. Because of this, I always took its autumn splendor for granted and don’t seem to have a photo of it.

Here it is in winter, peeking over the house. It’s starting to flower already. The squirrels are going to miss the flowers and seeds, although we have another very large maple in the back yard to keep them busy. 

A pose to show its girth.  

Here it is, throwing shade in the summer. 

A large shade tree can reduce energy consumption by 50%.  The temperature moderation provided by a shade tree can prevent paint from peeling on the house. Trees curb noise. However, a silver maple is the number one tree not to plant near your house, for reasons mentioned above.  Yes, it is the most invasive tree you can plant.

In the neighborhood, several big old trees have been lost to disease or due to sewer line entanglement. One 130-year-old tree was removed because branch fell in a neighbor’s yard during the derecho of 2020.  The neighbor freaked out and so did the homeowner. We also removed a sugar maple that was struck by lightning and slowly dying.

The tree’s branches fell with tremendous thumps and sawdust rained like snow. Despite all my rationalization about why this had to be, it made me sad. The tree was fairly healthy. It posed no immediate threat of falling.

The trunk fell with an earthshaking crash and light streamed into my window.

Ironically, the last branch came down on what would have been my Mom’s 93^rd birthday. She planted this tree, after she moved to Iowa more than thirty years before the house got air conditioning in 1999. It might have been free from the bank for opening an account. Her childhood home, a place in the Western Michigan country known as Maple Brook Farm, had a similar tree too close to the house. It’s also gone and in fact, the entire farmhouse was bulldozed and replaced.

I want to plant a climate change resistant tree  or ornamental tree in its place. That side of the yard is where the somewhat new sewer line runs so whatever goes there should have non-invasive roots—a tree with roots that grow straight down. There are plenty such trees including other maple species, spruce trees, pine trees, hickory, and sturdy oak trees which fill this neighborhood. Smaller fruit and ornamental trees fit the bill. Silver maple is not one of them. We frequently pruned it to avoid windthrow, which occurs if branches and leaves are thrown by the wind and take the roots with them. Still, I became afraid of it as it grew taller. If you are reading this and feeling throat tightening panic about your tree, relax. Call a tree specialist for an opinion. Most trees can be trimmed to safety. And if you aren’t sure what type of tree you have, use an ap such as Picture This. A well-kept tree is way more benefit than risk.

Needless to say, I’ve been second guessing myself. I can only say I didn’t want to be a penniless retired teacher with axed Social Security paying the city to dig up the street to remove tree roots from the sewer.  Tree roots can grow even without the tree, so I tell myself that this was the right time. Still, I’m sad about it all. 

Tonight, the winds howl around the house, reminding me that some of my actions are simply preparing for storms to come and let’s be honest, they’re coming.