Ailing eucalyptus at Urth Caffe gets a plant prognosis to weigh possible removal

A gum eucalyptus tree next to an outdoor patio at Urth Caffé in north Laguna was surrounded Tuesday morning by people wondering if the patient could be saved.

About 10 residents, three arborists and city staff gathered in a cordoned-off section along Aster Street to discuss the tree’s condition and gauge whether it poses a risk to the public or is worth saving.

The 50-foot-tall red gum stands in the middle of a concrete sidewalk in the city’s right-of-way. Two large, curling branches extend from its trunk to form a partial canopy over Aster Street. City staff said the tree is between 70 and 80 years old.

The on-site public meeting was the first following the City Council’s recent adoption of an interim policy that mandates a more thorough vetting of a tree’s health before deciding whether it should be removed. The city’s decision last month to remove a eucalyptus tree in the Lumberyard mall area, which two arborists said was at risk of falling, caused alarm among staunch tree advocates and helped spur the temporary rules — which are placeholders pending permanent measures.

Under the interim policy, a resident or business owner who is worried that a tree could fail would submit an arborist report to the city, which would then hire its own professional to assess the tree’s health, schedule an on-site meeting and eventually bring in an independent arborist to review the two reports.

Urth’s landscape architect recommended removal of the tree in a letter to the city in September, the same month the cafe opened on property that the Cottage restaurant had called home for nearly 50 years before closing in 2012.

Arborists hired by the city and Urth, along with the independent reviewer, agreed that the tree is in declining health.

Residents, though, indicated an affinity for the tree and advocated for any remedies that could save it.

Eric Gorsuch, the arborist hired by Urth, reiterated Tuesday what he saw when he visited the site in May 2015.

“The roots were exposed a bit. They appeared soft and mushy,” Gorsuch said. “Because there is potential for roots starting to decay, it minimizes the [tree’s] structural stability.”

Looking toward the top of the tree, Gorsuch added, “The crown looked better [last year] than it does today.”

Cris Falco, the city-hired arborist, said he was concerned with failing branches and added that insects called lerp psyllids have taken their toll. Lerp psyllids suck needed nutrients from leaves, depriving the tree of energy and causing it to shed leaves.

Greg Applegate, an arborist who reviewed reports from Gorsuch and Falco, was most concerned about the lower foot of the trunk and the roots. A large gash of dead wood covers a portion of the trunk, which some speculated was caused by cars backing up into it.

“Considering all the soil underneath is compacted to smithereens, roots don’t grow in that,” Applegate said at the meeting.

In his report, Applegate said trucks parked too close to the tree’s roots as Urth renovated the facility, causing damage to the tree.

But Amy Jackson, who lives nearby, contested that assertion Tuesday, saying she frequently drove by the site and saw that crews took the utmost care in protecting the tree.

“No one wants to see someone hurt by a tree, but I don’t want to see the town lose its character,” Jackson said.

A chemical designed to kill the lerp psyllids could be injected into the tree, but Applegate said the area of dead wood on the trunk would hinder its effectiveness.

“Nothing is going to go up through old, dead vessels,” Applegate said in a follow-up phone interview. “The dead part of the trunk is not going to conduct anything.”

In a memo to the city Wednesday, Applegate recommended removing the tree in the next few months. But a council member could request that the matter be discussed further at a public meeting before a final decision on the tree’s fate is sealed.

If the tree is eventually removed, Urth would pay for the work since the business’ arborist requested that it be taken out, said Christina Templeton, city engineer and interim public works director.