Four students were driving home from the big game when a tree fell across the road onto their vehicle. Only the driver survived. The tree stood on a property line and in the right-of-way. While the house owners' insurance company settled immediately, the State said the driver was at fault. Sometime after the incident, Ed was asked to look at the photographs taken at the accident scene. Clearly, there were significant problems with the tree, which any maintenance worker should have noticed. The State insisted the area was rural, but a No Parking sign was clearly visible near the tree, and the grass was regularly cut by State employees. As the case neared a court date, someone else came forward with additional evidence, and the State settled.

Bob and Barb built their dream house. Ed predicted the decline of their trees, based on obvious construction injuries. When the inevitable came to be, Bob and Barb decided to try again, this time utilizing Ed's planning skills. Their new house was built in a subdivision carved from a wooded area of Fairfax County. The developer used typical layouts for the neighborhood, until Bob and Barb's house was built. Their house was set farther back from the street and rotated to enable preservation of the better trees. Nine years later, they have not lost a single tree, while almost every other tree in the original woods has been removed.

In the blizzard of '97, a snow plow finally arrived on Murphy's street about 1 AM. With no curbs and such deep snow, the plow got off the paved surface and could not get back on. A tow truck was called, but could not pull the plow out. So, the driver dumped his bed to lighten the load. Remember, this is Murphy's street: as the plow was towed free, a broken water line erupted, sending thousands of gallons of water into the salt dumped off the plow. The plumber got done about 4 AM and, being the helpful sort, he used his backhoe to grade out the soil/salt/snow mixture. In spring, nothing came into growth in two yards… everything was dead.

Ed was called to determine what the loss of value was. An appraisal must be fair to all parties involved; there were two households and the State department of transportation to be considered. In the end, Ed developed a plan whereby the State replaced almost 75 cubic yards of contaminated soil, a contractor replanted the lawn, and checks were written to settle the losses associated with the trees, shrubs, and perennials.

The HOA grounds committee had a dilemma. They had a huge dead, disintegrating tree hanging over a building, and their $20,000 annual budget had been spent on American elm injections for Dutch elm disease protection. The community board of directors was alarmed.

Ed was hired to develop a management plan for the community's grounds. After using their plan for four years, the grounds committee had money left over in their budget.

Follow Your Plan!!!

The lady who owned the huge tree was distressed, to say the least. She had come home to find her tree being pruned by a builder's subcontractor. She hired Ed to comment on the project next door and the prognosis for her trees. A review of the approved plans showed that the builder had over-graded the site, and the prognosis for the trees was poor. Ed worked with the local government and the builder's representative to make a deal whereby the builder bonded the lady's trees for several years.