Why Topping Hurts Arborists

[Joe Newton]

I can't stand people who mow their lawns, its terrible, they should either let the grass grow unhindered or dig it up and lay astroturf!!!

For that matter where do hedges come into it?

 

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[AA Teccie (Paul)]

Firstly the snarky comment about removal not being as lucrative. Load of crap frankly.

 

Now moving on to rest of the post. "Please consider removal as an alternative"

 

As an alternative to what? reducing/topping a tree?

 

I've worked on willows that get hat racked every 7 years without any mercy.

 

They come back great, there's no way you can just let them go in the space they're in.

 

Clients happy, I'm happy, tree's happy

 

Tippy tappy little reductions totally pointless or you'd have to do them every two weeks.

 

So what does the professional body suggest? A removal!

 

You're not in the real world Paul, and your organisation will always be on the fringes of the industry until you accept there are few absolute rights and wrongs in this game.

 

Mick, you've misinterpreted my post.

 

The reality is it is more lucrative - a fact, not a snarky comment at all.

 

Secondly, I just sought to add an alternative, possible / viable in some, but not all admittedly, approach which I do think is often overlooked. This is one of a range of options available to the client.

 

I live in a different world to you Mick, admittedly, hence I do sit more on the theoretical side of the industry perhaps but I was merely adding my ten-penneth...take it or leave it. Respectfully Mick, I could challenge you for the constant polar opposite approach...hence a balance, and mutual respect, will hopefully be reached

 

Be happy...at least your not affected by the political farce here in the UK

 

TTFN,

Paul

[Mick Dempsey]

Why are reductions more lucrative? Not IME.

 

The possibility of a call back in say 7 years time to do the re-reduction, is hardly enough for the greedy tree surgeon to rub their hands together Fagin style.

 

The client may have moved, died, found someone else or simply forgotten who they called in the first place.

[AA Teccie (Paul)]

Why are reductions more lucrative? Not IME.

 

The possibility of a call back in say 7 years time to do the re-reduction, is hardly enough for the greedy tree surgeon to rub their hands together Fagin style.

 

The client may have moved, died, found someone else or simply forgotten who they called in the first place.

 

Simplistically the fact that they offer 'repeat business' opportunities, talking topped / 'pollarded'(?) trees here, perhaps every 3-5 years...and then ultimate removal.

 

I know one contractor who has a database of both hedge owning customers he's worked for, and 'topped' tree owners, and he contacts them annually / regularly reminding them their hedges / trees need cutting...works very nice indeed.

 

That's why

Paul

[Mick Dempsey]

Even if I were to believe your opinion affirming crafty contractor story....

 

I do the job, I make more money taking trees out, people are happy to pay more for it.

 

Add the grinding into it and there's no contest.

 

 

 

 

How can you ascertain the happiness or otherwise of the clients in these cases?

 

It's entirely possible that maybe an ash has been heavily reduced twenty years ago then redone say 4 times in the interim. Then (maybe) it's got to come out. So what?

 

In the meantime the client has had the benefit of the tree, has been happy that they have light in their garden because of the regular trimming, and at least the comfort that if it fell it wouldn't reach the house.

 

Would they have been better off cutting it down 20 years ago, then staring at a sapling for a decade?

Edited June 9, 2017 by Mick Dempsey

[breffni]

Would it not be better for wildlife to have a tree which is topped regularly than replacing it with a new tree which has no decay?

 

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[James Atkinson]

I'm sat here reading some of the most ridiculous and un educated bull crap of all time.

It's pretty simple - topping is bad unless your doing certain species, basically willows - pollard.

In around 12 years experience I have carried out 100s of reductions from 1m to 3m spec depending on species.

I would say 90% of customers will let you do it correctly if you spend the time to properly explain it. After all they are already keeping it if they originally wanted it topped.

In fact I end up reducing a lot of trees that the homeowner originally wanted felling, or a company I am competing against for the work didn't explain things correctly.

Not good money?, one reason for that, your to slow, THIS is the main reason why arborists like topping, it's fast, easy no brain work, then afterwards we get "it's what the customer wanted". That is also the reason why arbs prefer removing the tree."it's what they wanted" no mate that's what YOU wanted. (Climbs down from my pedestal)

[Mick Dempsey]

So you convince the clients to have a tippy reduction when they wanted something else.

 

In other words you don't do what they want, you do what YOU want to do......mate.

 

Anyway you sound awesome, congrats.

[James Atkinson]

So you convince the clients to have a tippy reduction when they wanted something else.

 

In other words you don't do what they want, you do what YOU want to do......mate.

 

Anyway you sound awesome, congrats.

 

 

Incorrect. People often want their tree down because they are scared it will fall (usually a tree surgeon has told them this who likes logs) once they know it's all good (if it is) then if they still want something doing it might as well be done correctly, after all that is our job. If they still want it out, fine it's coming out. I'm not awesome, I'm not even fast but we might as well do what we are doing properly and stop taking the easy route to money.

[Mick Dempsey]

I don't really believe the narrative of log hungry tree surgeons misleading homeowners to fell trees.

 

Maybe very rarely, but "usually" ...no.

 

Perception of danger can be as good a reason for a fell as real danger, if every time the wind blows the client is worried it'll fall on the house, then removing the tree makes the client's life better.

 

If the tree was any great shakes it'd have a tpo (in the U.K.) anyway.