Saguaro Cacti removal (Any Clues)

flwiii · Nov 30, 2005

Does anyone out here have any ideas on removing a 50 foot (about 8 arms - some 15 feet high) very old saguaro catus. It is about 5 feet from the house and it, I believe is dying. They are full of water and rumor has it that they weigh about 100 pounds per foot. So my guess on weight including arms is about 17,000 pounds. I thought about one of those pole chain saws, but I don't think it would be real manageable at a distance of 50 feet. I welcome any viable suggestions.

BobReeves · Nov 30, 2005

Aren't cati pretty soft, knock it over with your FEL, curl the bucket down and chop it up. load it into a dumpster with your FEL... Done deal...

Jimbrown · Nov 30, 2005

That sucker is probably worth at least $500. Call any good landscape place and offer it to them for free and I bet they come get it.

flwiii · Nov 30, 2005

I thought about trying to push it over with the FEL, but after seeing a news report of a man who crash landed his plane safely only to be crushed to death when his plane came to rest against a saguaro that fell over on the plane. Any arm that may break off can weigh thousands of pounds.

I also called a couple of landscape places and they want to charge me $3000 - $4000 to have it removed. I wonder if using a large bucket truck and a pole chain saw would work, cutting it from the top about a foot at the time, but I am worried that it could and crush the truck.

I will try more landscape places. Thanks for the suggestions. Has anyone ever tackled such a project?

EastTexFrank · Nov 30, 2005

Had a friend once who used to drive out into the desert and shoot them down with a shotgun and slugs. /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif They are not very hard. Why not treat it like a tree???? Throw a rope or chain round it as high up as you can, tie the other end to the tractor, notch the cactus, climb in tractor and take off. Just use a rope that is longer than the cactus is high. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

EddieWalker · Dec 1, 2005

I'm with Frank. I've never seen one, but it seems that a good rope shoudl do an aweful lot of damage to most cactus. Just loop it and pull it away from the house. Worse case scenerio is you get some thorns in your rope. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Eddie

California · Dec 1, 2005

( Worse case scenerio is you get some thorns in your rope. )

Or catapult the thing through the roof after the rope breaks. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif

flwiii, be sure to have someone there to take pictures for us. Better yet, movies.You might even make America's Funniest Home Videos!

Long ago I worked with a guy who pulled a huge tall Eucalyptus tree down, right down the centerline of his tractor. He said he got off and ran like crazy when he saw it was wasn't going to land where he planned.

If the landscaper wants $3,000+, then there must be more to it than is obvious. Because it is heavy he will probably saw it off a foot at a time from a cherrypicker.

I suggest keep trying to sell it. Maybe some big real estate developer wants it for the entrance to a new subdivision or something where longevity isn't too important.

TheKid · Dec 2, 2005

According to this site you need to notify the Arizona Department of Agriculture prior to cutting it down. They may know of someone that may be interested in buying it from you.

flwiii · Dec 2, 2005

The last I heard, this law had been modified so that landowners did not need to inform AZ AG of the destruction; only the transplantation or sale. I will have to verify the accuracy of this information since it was last updated in 2004. Thanks for the hyperlink.