I have no idea when that was "the thing to do." Were yours also way too close?
As far as aesthetics go, they're beautiful little trees. Evergreen, nice solid shade, pretty blooms right about now. Most of me is sorry to see them go. But it's completely impossible to garden under one and I'm getting too old to pull literally thousands of sprouts every year. The illness and wobbling in the wind were the last straw.
