A crazy thing to do is kill another person. A less crazy thing to do is to take an axe to a tree in the Upper West Side and deplete it of the nutrients it needs to survive. The latter, however, is still a bad and terrible way to release your anger, so if it was you—own up!

DNAinfo has the report on a tree located on West End Ave and West 103rd Street whose trunk was hacked mercilessly one day or night last week, and was discovered by residents of the neighborhood who compared the image to a "murder scene." Because of the damage done to the tree, there is a chance it may have to be chopped down. Costello Caldwell, the owner of a garden store who had previously built a protective barrier around the tree, says he is going to attempt to revive it:

He explained that without that layer of bark, the tree's nutrient-delivery system becomes interrupted and it could die.

But Caldwell hasn't given up on the tree yet and is planning a grafting operation to try to save it, he said Monday.

First, he plans to remove a small strip of bark from the upper part of the tree and apply it to the section that was stripped off, using beeswax to make it stick. Next, he'll cover it with a wet towel and protect it with a plastic bag, he said.

Residents of the area have left poetry, flowers, and candles at the murder scene, sending along well-wishes and heartfelt feelings for the tree's speedy recovery. The NYPD reportedly has no leads on a suspect, though one resident in the area feels confident that the tree was hacked with an axe.

If you did this, it was pretty fucked up. You should probably come clean!

Image via DNAinfo. Contact the author at dayna.evans@gawker.com.