The cut

Lovers of Piha’s natural beauty breathed a sigh of relief this Wednesday when the Waitakere Ranges Local Board voted to retain one of Piha’s iconic pohutukawa, wind-sculpted, an old survivor of ferocious Tasman gales and salt laden winds.

It had been under threat after a complaint that it was in the way of pedestrians in Beach Valley Road, as it has been ever since Piha was subdivided in the 1930s.

Last night (Thursday) a vandal took a saw to the tree, cutting through about a quarter of the trunk at the base, at a critical point in terms of the weight on the branch.

Annette Richards, Council arborist, and Treescape arborists confer

The tree was also spray painted with a crude arrow pointing at the cut.

Parks West arborist Annette Richards has visited the tree with arborists from Treescape. It is almost certain the limb will have to go, as there are fears that it will fall into the carriageway if there is a big blow.

In the meantime, the cut limb has been tethered to the remaining limb so that if it cracks off it will be held back from the road.

The tree will be visited by Parks managers over the weekend and a decision made over its fate.

A complaint has been lodged with the police about the vandalism.

Measuring the depth of the cut

Tethering the limbs together