View Single Post
Old 29th June 2007, 07:22 PM   #2 (permalink)
Sean Freeman
PDF King & Arborist Extrodinaire
 
Sean Freeman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Townsville Nth Queensland & Gold Coast Sth Queensland
Posts: 1,781
Default

Well before we play with MS Paint lets define terms for everyone so we are all talking about similar if not the same things.

Restoration of the crown after lopping: Attempting to improve the remaining branch structure
.....with recent lopping cuts and numerous small epicormic shoots it is first the selection of which of those shoots stand the best chance in your opinion of developing reasonably strong attachment to the main branch/limb and which will in time grow back into something approximating the original form.
......with older more established epicormics from several years ago much of the initial selection has been done by the tree...not always to the benefit of regaining form or stability! (the case in point with your circled double branch) Selective subordination of the less desirable of the two branches would be my prescription here, and this might well take 2/3 yrs to complete, perhaps more.

We always have to keep in mind that just as with storm damaged trees it may not be possible to restore the tree to anything like its normal form. Lopped trees can be very dangerous to climb and work in, even experienced climbers have to allow for reductions in the strengths in unions that are very hard to predict.

We also have to accept that unless you have an exceptional client with both a strong love and understanding of their tree, the time frames realy required to undertake this kind of work may not be acceptable to them......very long hours of counselling required in this area of arb work, and even then it can be very frustrating to be hamstrung by the demands of the tree owner.
__________________
Sean

Trees are poems that earth writes upon the sky,
We fell them down and turn them into paper,
That we may record our emptiness.
- Kahlil Gibran

Sean Freeman is offline   Reply With Quote