I need to take down my Black walnut tree to make room for a garage. the tree has a diameter of 34.39" but it has a twist and a gap that is about 3" deep that runs up about 20' the people I have asked to give me a price to take the tree down are consistent. They both told me the wood is worthless on this tree because it has this split. The tree is still healthy. I am trying to find out if there really is no value in the wood.

Hi Mike:

Unfortunately, it is difficult to determine if your black walnut tree has any lumber potential without photos.

And to be fair, most certified arborists / tree service companies are not in the business of paying homeowners for useable portions of removed trees. This doesn't mean that a portion of your yard tree isn't suitable for milling into lumber, it just means that many arborists simply do not incorporate "log/lumber value" into their tree removal quotes. Again, arborists are in the tree care and tree removal business -- most are not in the business of buying or bartering yard trees for future milling purposes.

Something to also consider is asking the arborist/tree service company to simply retain as much of the main stem/bole for you to possibly sell yourself after the removal operation is completed. There are urban wood networks/directories in Wisconsin that cater to these urban wood utilization efforts.