The maple trees have stood silent watch over Pioneer Cemetery on Auburn Way North for more than half a century, shading its sleeping residents and any souls who step into the cemetery.

But now time, disease and decay have caught up with 10 of the huge trees, their beauty masking danger.

“Some of them only have a couple of inches of good wood still holding up a 36-inch trunk,” said Daryl Faber, director of Auburn Parks, Arts and Recreation. “You could put a probe all the way through those trees.”

Faced with the possibility that someone could get hurt or perhaps killed, Faber said Monday that the City will cut the 10 trees down over three to four days in late January or early February.

“We’ve known about this for three or four years, in fact we’ve taken down three of the 10 already just because of the danger of falling limbs,” Faber said.

Faber said the trees have been improperly trimmed over the last 20 to 30 years, leading to decay and rot. They’ve also been continuously trimmed over Auburn Way North, so all the weight is on the other side of the tree.

“They’re very diseased,” Faber said.

The City plans to replace them with 10 Autumn Blaze Maples, which turn green in summer and orange in the fall.

Of course, it will be many years before the new trees achieve the grandeur and size of the ones they are replacing.

The City will have to close various lanes of Auburn Way North in 40-minute intervals during the project.

“They’re not downing the whole trees at one time. But we have to make sure they don’t land on cars, grave sites or on the wrought-iron fence,” Faber said.