A client in Boulder once asked me to 'just trim the top' of a 40-foot pine, then got mad when I said that would kill it.

I used to try and explain the science of tree health in detail, thinking they'd appreciate the knowledge. Now, after that guy argued with me for 20 minutes about 'topping' being fine because his cousin did it, I just show a picture of a dead, topped tree from my phone gallery. It shuts down the debate instantly and saves my sanity. Anyone else have a go-to visual that stops bad client ideas in their tracks?

3 comments

3 Comments

casey34223d ago

Got to disagree on the picture thing. Some people just see a weird looking tree and think it's fine. I've had better luck explaining it like a bad haircut that never grows back right.

grantc8023d ago

Totally get that, my neighbor thought his topped pine looked "sculptural".

craig.parker23d ago

Oh man, that haircut line is perfect. My buddy showed his mom a picture of a hack job on her oak tree. She just said it looked "artsy". Had to pull up a photo of a healthy tree side by side before she got it.