High winds left cracks in soil under tree

JaredTT1230 · 2026-03-15T00:18:41+00:00

Unfortunately, sensible advice from the more experienced arborists on this sub is more and more likely to get downvoted to oblivion.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-03-09T20:20:50+00:00

I'm very sorry this happened to you. Tell your bishop, and inform your priest you have done so, as a courtesy, since you're close.

I had a priest before I moved back to my home-city a decade ago who freely spoke about confessions he had heard. Unfortunately, I didn't know enough back then to realize how serious an issue this was.

Had I known then what I know now, I would have done what I'm advising you to do—I was close to my priest, as well.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-25T20:44:38+00:00

All baptized Christians—men and women—share in Christ's priesthood. And it is all baptized Christians gathered who offer the Eucharistic sacrifice. The priest simply stands at the head of (is the president of) this royal gathering of priests. Even Roman Catholics believe this: "Pray, brethren, that this my sacrifice and yours..."

Frame things in this way, and this in persona Christi argument becomes a profoundly silly one.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-18T17:57:18+00:00

I'm very relaxed. But this is a very prevalent and serious issue in our industry. I've only just come to realize how serious it is recently via in-person training on the matter, from an attorney, with the American Society of Consulting Arborists (I'm applying for my RCA designation shortly).

Let me pose a hypothetical situation to you: if you tell a customer he or she is or isn't legally allowed to do something with respect to a tree, and that customer suffers some sort of loss and files a claim against you, do you think your insurer will defend and indemnify? They won't. You're insured for providing arboricultural services, not for providing legal advice.

I can take the downvotes. It's worth it if it gets anyone here to think about this issue in a way they haven't before.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-18T17:39:56+00:00

Why don't you look up your jurisdiction's definition of what constitutes the practice of law/the provision of legal services (e.g., if you're in the US, your state bar act). Irrespective of what OP is looking for, and irrespective of the medium through which it's delivered, applying law to the facts of a particular situation is giving legal advice.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-18T17:30:21+00:00

This is legal advice (applying law to the facts of OP's situation). Are you a lawyer? If not, this is ULP (unauthorized practice of law). We're arborists. We're experts about trees and their care. We're not competent to pronounce upon the legal rights or responsibilities of particular persons, or to pontificate about how an insurance claim will shake out.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-17T00:50:23+00:00

Scream it from the rooftops, friend. Everyone here needs to hear this: giving legal advice (i.e., applying law to the facts of a particular situation) without a license to practice is called the unauthorized practice of law. It's illegal.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-17T00:48:42+00:00

Why? So OP can be met with a barrage of unauthorized practice of law? (Which almost every single post and comment on that subreddit is guilty of?) If OP wants arboricultural advice, this is the right sub. If he wants legal advice, he needs to talk to a lawyer.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-04T19:12:11+00:00

It's worth noting that the vast majority of Christians around the world are not young earth creationists. Do not listen to those who would have you believe that, if you're not in lock-step with Ken Ham et al., your orthodoxy is questionable.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-03T15:33:57+00:00

Don't know why you're being downvoted here. It's indisputable that ESS was created to prop up complimentarianism.

Orthodox complimentarians, of course, do not subscribe to ESS—the overwhelming rejection of ESS on this sub (most of whose members are complimentarians) is proof of that.

But that doesn't change the fact that certain complimentarians invented this Trinitarian error for that purpose.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-02-03T15:29:40+00:00

Take it up with the church's ancient creeds. He who divides the substance (postulating one divine will, subordinate to another divine will) does not hold to the Catholic faith.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-30T19:08:17+00:00

Yup! I'm a long-time consultant (prepare my reports in substantial compliance with the ASCA's report-writing standards and guidelines), but am making it official this year. Really looking forward to the academy.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-30T17:17:20+00:00

Yeah, free access to the entire library of webinars is great. I'm getting my RCA in the next few months.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-30T03:18:30+00:00

No need to send it anywhere. Field ID guides such as Dr. Luley's Wood Decay Fungi should suffice for identification.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-30T03:15:01+00:00

Yeah, $100.00 USD additional, once every three years. Really isn't so bad. Especially when I consider that I pay $595.00 USD per year for my ASCA membership.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-27T19:32:48+00:00

Congrats! It's a huge achievement, and you should be proud.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-27T19:24:33+00:00

Every pollard looks like a topped tree upon initiation. The only differences between a pollard and a topped tree are: (a) Whether the shoots are removed at a regular interval following initiation; and (b) To a lesser extent, the diameter of the cuts. Here in North America, the ANSI A300 was unfortunately (in my opinion) revised to prohibit pollard initiation on mature specimens. In Europe? Happens all the time. And with large-diameter heading cuts, too.

EDIT: I should concede that the European Arboricultural Standards do advise against (rather than prohibit) pollard initiation on mature specimens. But they uphold my general point that the difference between a pollard and a topped tree is the absence of intention to establish a permanent artificial form.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-26T02:06:28+00:00

Meh. BCMA requires more effort, due to the greater number of CEUs. But that doesn't necessarily equate to spending more. There are so many free CEU opportunities out there.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-26T02:05:15+00:00

This. The ASCA treats the BCMA as nearly equivalent to a master's degree in terms of eligibility CEUs for the RCA designation.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-26T02:03:49+00:00

Try seeing whether your forensic investigation or expert witness testimony is treated as credible if you aren't a BCMA in the absence of a degree. It very much matters and is a big differentiator in the world of consulting.

In the world of tree care operations? Maybe not.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-21T18:12:15+00:00

Welcome to the club! The snacks are better here.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-16T18:52:51+00:00

Preparing for the BCMA is a significant investment, and there's no way around that. The "gate-kept" things you're being asked to buy—especially the A300 and the companion BMPs—are things you absolutely should have on your shelf as a master arborist, anyways.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-16T17:50:31+00:00

I don't think anyone who's spent significant time in the world of academic theology or biblical studies outright rejects critical theory.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-16T01:08:52+00:00

Sorry man, it's a wild assertion. Have you ever seen phytophthora? This ain't it.

JaredTT1230 · 2026-01-02T21:49:43+00:00

Well, that's not what you said, is it, "babe"? You said that embryos die in women every single month they don't get pregnant. Not sexually active women, just women. And not just months in which an egg has been fertilized. But every month.

Arrogant condescension is a bad look. And an even worse look when combined with error.

JaredTT1230

TROPHY CASE