On 7/18/2009 5:45 PM, busbus wrote:
Hello,

I don’t even know if you can do what I want to do. I have a birch tree
that is dying. I knew they were short-lived trees whenever I planted
it over 20 years ago. It is on my hillside and I have chicken wire on
the hill helping hold the mulch on it since it is pretty steep, so I
have a mess on my hands.

The tree is about 20-feet tall now. It is a clump birch with three
trunks. Each trunk is about the size of, say, a softball or smaller.

I believe I can cut it down and get a fair amount of roots out. If I
wait a few years, can I plant in exactly the same spot? Or would I be
forced to move 6-8 feet away? If it is the latter, I simply cannot do
it. Could I plant anything in the same hole? A tall bush or something,
at least? The tree helped shade my deck plus I sort of “need” the
height, if you know what I mean…

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,
ray

This is a question for your local nursery or arborist. It depends on
the type of tree and why it died.

I know that a peach tree can be planted where an old peach tree has been
removed. Peaches are indeed relatively short-lived. In commercial
peach orchards, it's not unusual to remove all the trees after about 15
years. I had one removed after about 17 years. The tree service ground
out the stump. That was in the fall. The following spring, I planted a
new peach in the exact same spot. This fall (about 20 years later),
I'll have the second one removed and plant a third one there.

On the other hand, I believe that an oak should not be planted where a
previous oak had been removed. That is because a dying oak develops
root fungus that can afflict a new oak.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary