Tree Education
Bad tree service practices can lead to significant harm to trees, landscapes, and even property.
Here are some of the most common poor practices in tree care:
Topping Trees:
This is when the top of the tree is cut off, leaving large, unsightly stubs. It severely weakens the tree, promotes decay, and can lead to long-term health problems or death.
Improper Pruning:
Cutting branches at the wrong place or using incorrect techniques can damage trees, leaving them vulnerable to disease, pests, and decay. Poor pruning can also disrupt a tree’s natural growth pattern.
Overpruning or Excessive Removal of Branches:
Removing too many branches at once can stress the tree, reducing its ability to photosynthesize and recover from the cuts. This can weaken the tree and shorten its lifespan.
Tree Spiking:
Using climbing spikes for non-removal work can damage the bark and cambium layer of a tree, opening it up to infections and pests. This practice should be avoided unless the tree is being removed.
Improper Use of Equipment:
Using heavy machinery around trees, especially near the root zone, can cause compaction of the soil, which reduces oxygen availability to the roots, negatively affecting tree health.
Neglecting Safety Standards:
Tree work is inherently dangerous. Companies that don’t follow safety standards put workers and property at risk, which can lead to accidents, injuries, and property damage.
Leaving Stubs After Pruning:
Cutting branches too far away from the trunk leaves stubs that don’t heal properly, leading to decay and attracting pests.
Failing to Address Root Damage:
Excavation or construction near trees can damage roots. Ignoring this can lead to tree instability and eventual decline.
Improper Tree Removal:
Failing to plan and execute safe tree removal can result in damage to nearby property, power lines, or even injury to people.
WHAT IS “Lions Tailing” A TREE
“Lion’s tailing” a tree is a poor pruning practice where the interior branches and foliage of a tree are excessively removed, leaving only a tuft of leaves at the ends of the branches. This gives the branches the appearance of a lion’s tail, hence the name.
This practice is harmful for several reasons:
- Unbalanced Growth: Lion’s tailing leaves the tree with all its foliage at the ends of the branches, making the tree top-heavy and more prone to breaking or splitting, especially in strong winds or storms.
- Stress to the Tree: Removing too much of the interior foliage forces the tree to rely on less leaf surface area for photosynthesis, which stresses the tree and weakens its ability to produce energy.
- Increased Sunburn Risk: With interior branches removed, the bark is more exposed to direct sunlight. This can lead to sunscald or bark damage, which can affect the tree’s overall health.
- Encourages Weak Growth: Lion’s tailing often stimulates rapid, weak growth at the ends of the branches. This new growth can be structurally weak and more susceptible to breakage.
Proper pruning focuses on maintaining the natural form and balance of the tree while improving its health, structure, and safety. Lion’s tailing, in contrast, compromises these principles and can severely affect the longevity and stability of the tree.
WHAT IS “Tree Topping”
Tree topping is a harmful tree-pruning practice where the top of the tree’s crown is removed, cutting off the main branches, often leaving large, bare stubs. This is typically done to reduce the height of the tree, but it leads to numerous negative consequences for the tree’s health and structure.
Why Tree Topping is Bad:
- Weakens the Tree: Tree topping removes a large portion of the tree’s leaf-bearing crown, which reduces the tree’s ability to photosynthesize and create food. This stresses the tree, weakening its overall health.
- Promotes Weak, Rapid Growth: In response to the loss of its crown, a topped tree will produce many fast-growing shoots called “water sprouts” or “suckers.” These new shoots are weakly attached, grow rapidly, and are prone to breaking off in storms or high winds.
- Increases Susceptibility to Pests and Diseases: Large open wounds caused by topping don’t heal properly and expose the tree to infections, pests, and decay. The tree’s natural defense systems are overwhelmed by the extent of the damage.
- Destroys the Tree’s Natural Shape: Topping removes the tree’s natural, balanced form, often leaving it disfigured. The growth that follows will often be uneven and unnatural, further damaging the tree’s aesthetics.
- Shortens Tree Lifespan: Topping can accelerate a tree’s decline, as it becomes stressed, prone to decay, and loses its structural integrity. Many topped trees die prematurely because they are unable to recover from the extreme damage.
- Expensive in the Long Term: Topping often requires ongoing maintenance as new growth becomes problematic. Additionally, trees that die or become dangerous due to topping may need to be removed, which can be costly.
Proper pruning should focus on maintaining the tree’s structure and health without compromising its natural shape or function. Topping does the opposite and is widely considered an unsafe and destructive practice.