Part II.
I was sick at heart when Hurricane Ike blew it completely down. Here’s a picture of the tree on the ground. However, I noticed when I worked my way back to it through the debris, that its roots were not exposed (unlike a nearby Bay Tree which had to be removed). It looked as if none were broken, something which later proved incorrect. Therefore, I immediately began treating the tree while I tried to locate someone to help me raise it back up.
First, I applied Mycorrhizal Fungi all around the hole and roots. I treated it with a mixture of SuperThrive and diluted Seaweed Emulsion every day at first, then every couple of days, gradually extending the periods of time between treatments. And, yes, I talked to the tree. I covered the exposed root area with damp cotton sheeting over which I placed a plastic tarp to help keep the sun off the roots and keep the ground moist. My regular tree man was battling cancer so I didn’t try to phone him. All other professional tree experts were busy helping people who had trees through their roofs, clearly the priority. I finally found two carpenters who were willing to help. While they set 4x4 wood posts (no steel ones were available) into concrete, I pruned the tree to lessen the overall weight, primarily cutting on the side of the tree on the ground. Once the concrete was dry, the two men pushed the tree up as far as they could. It was while we were doing this that I realized one major root had been broken by the fall. Too late now to reconsider raising the tree, we soldiered on. Only what I considered to be “weak” black plastic tree chain was available to hold the tree in place, augmented by some stronger plastic tree chain I had stockpiled in our shed. As soon as I could purchase good-quality mulch I applied it.
The tree did not drop any leaves during early fall. As I tapered off the SuperThrive and seaweed, I watched for signs of shock. Eventually, the tree’s leaves turned yellow and fell as always in fall. I continued to visit the tree regularly, even though I wasn’t continuing to treat it, to offer words of encouragement.
