Dead or Not Dead?

We have two cypress trees in the front yard. The contractors put them in before we closed on the house, and we were never given a choice about what we wanted. But, they seemed to be perfectly nice trees, so we left them alone.

The one by the driveway is lush and big and healthy. The other one is dead, or so I thought. It dropped all of its leaves back in June, and has looked crunchy ever since. But, we left it in place, as the summer is definitely not the best time to plant trees (particularly in the hot South). I had already planned on a nice maple to replace it.

Damned if that tree isn't coming back to life. It's sprouting leaves! Little, tiny, healthy green leaves! What the hell is up with that? It's FALL. Leaves are turning yellow and red and orange and DROPPING. Yet, the stupid cypress in my front yard that had (or perhaps still has) a death wish seems to be coming back to life.

All I want is a maple like the one in the back yard. But, how can I murder a tree that might possibly not be dead after all?