I started the treehouse build last winter when the trees were mostly bare. Come springtime I discovered a problem, one of the two trees I built around was not well. Like the coroner in The Wizard of Oz said, " it was not just merely dead, it was really quite sincerely dead". Too late to turn back, we finished the build and now we are removing the top part of the tree, attempting to not destroy my roof. Now what? We have a large dead tree trunk through the treehouse. Currently it is still quite strong but what will happen in years to come? I built a rain cap over the top of the sawed-off trunk and fingers crossed, it will continue to stand and help to support the treehouse for a long time. If not, we will need to implement plan two. Don't have that plan yet, but if necessary, something will matriculate.