Coronation cuts...

[Ty Korrigan]

And so it comes to pass, we are going to try our hand at this cut.

We have some oaks and chestnuts to reduce surrounding a lake and quite by chance I cycled past one evening before being asked to quote and observed bats flying out of the canopy of some of the trees to feed on the plethora of flying beasties over the lake.

We already use Aspen fuel and chain oil for the climbing saws and Pie Eater Pete has his new 150 with it's skinny chain.

 

BUT...

My question is this.

Is leaving 'dead wood' or wood unlikely to regrow/develop epicormic growth really likely to encourage further decay in the stem?

After all, the wound is no larger in diameter than the one left by a pruning wound.

So what if fungi grow on the stub left? Is it a dead cert the same fungi will for certain make a meal of the whole tree as a result?

A coronation cut is certainly going to increase to surface area available for fungi to feed on.

Regardless, we are going to try our best to make some decent habitat for the 'chauve souris' which translates as 'bald mice'

Any advice offered, welcomed.

Cheers

Ty

 

 

Cheers

Ty

[treeseer]

Hard to answer without knowing current condition of tree, size of cuts, % off...

 

If you want to make bald mice habitat, cut slits in the trunk. But first locate present nests, and do your best to avoid disturbing them by avoiding power tools etc.

[gemtrees]

Are you going to cap your cuts with something ie tin on a thin slice if wood??

[Paul Melarange]

Ty

That is a really good question. The use of 'coronet cuts' or 'natural fracture techniques' is to mimic the way branches would tear if they were to fail due to natural events rather than human intervention.

 

The use of these techniques can be for a number of purposes I.e. for aesthetics (looks better than just a stub) and creates crevasses which may provide habitat for invertebrates.

 

I think the key thing is that they allow arborists to make internodal cuts (cuts between points of growth) in a skilled manor, rather than doing (what feels like) substandard work. The thinking behind the use of internodal cuts for retrenchment pruning is to upset the balance of auxins and cytokinins in the branch, potentially initiating epicormic growth and lateral branches lower down in the internal parts of the crown.

 

Unless you are cutting large structural branches which have significant heartwood, or the tree is in poor physiological condition, it is unlikely that decay from the cut branches will extend into the main stem.

 

The retention of dead lateral branches provides habitat and a food source for a whole range of organisms including saproxylic invertebrates (invertebrates that require deadwood to complete their life cycle) and all sorts of fungi, particularly those that are saprophytic.

 

I hope this helps answer your question?

 

Kind regards

 

Paul

[peatff]

I thought it was going to be a thread about the royal family. What are coronet cuts for ? I thought it was just to make it look like the branch had broken off naturally.

 

Paul beat me to it with his explanation

[Paul Melarange]

This is probably the perfect opportunity for me to plug our (ancient tree forum) book written/edited by Dr David Lonsdale: Ancient and other veteran trees: further guidance on management.

 

It's available from a number of places including the tree council website:

 

http://treecouncil.org.uk/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=28&category_id=1&vmcchk=1&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=4

 

It's a fantastic book. It even has guidance on what to include in a method statement for work on a site where veteran trees are present!

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

This is probably the perfect opportunity for me to plug our (ancient tree forum) book written/edited by Dr David Lonsdale: Ancient and other veteran trees: further guidance on management.

 

It's available from a number of places including the tree council website:

 

Ancient and other veteran trees: further guidance on management | The Tree Council

 

It's a fantastic book. It even has guidance on what to include in a method statement for work on a site where veteran trees are present!

 

It's a fair good read! Picked up a copy at the Resilient Ancient Treescapes at National Trust Lanhydrock Estate recently....

[Paul Melarange]

I've just re-read my earlier post and think this paragraph needs further clarification:

 

'Unless you are cutting large structural branches which have significant heartwood, or the tree is in poor physiological condition, it is unlikely that decay from the cut branches will extend into the main stem.'

 

It is likely that most veteran and ancient trees could be considered to be in poor physiological condition. However, this is where 'functional units' become important. An old tree is likely to comprise a number of functional units I.e a structural branch or stem (and its associated xylem and phloem that link it with it's corresponding roots) that function almost independently from other parts of the tree.

 

So, if the functional unit you are working on demonstrates normal vitality it is unlikely that any decay associated with pruning cuts on lateral branches (depending on their size) will extend into the main trunk.

 

Basically, what I'm trying to say is: if you reduce a functional unit too much and it dies, there is a strong possibility that decay from that section of the tree will affect the main trunk (eventually).

[Paul Melarange]

It's a fair good read! Picked up a copy at the Resilient Ancient Treescapes at National Trust Lanhydrock Estate recently....

 

👍

 

That's good to hear. It's a book that would be of benefit to most arborists regardless of whether they work on ancient and veteran trees or not. It includes lots of detailed information on tree biology.

 

Everyone should own a copy 😀

[sean]

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/tree-health-care/440-coronet-not-coronet-now-question.html