Damage by spurs

[Mick Dempsey]

And only wear pruning spikes, more pro looking.

[billpierce]

Totes legit on gangly crack willow

[Mark Bolam]

Joking aside, the spec on some 'reductions' I see hardly encourages best practice for future maintenance work.

[Stephen Blair]

Most of my work over the years has been topping unmanaged self seeded sycamores on steep banks and cliff edges, all for views .

5-10” at the bottom growing like bananas to 40-70’

It’s butchery for a view so spiked it is, trying to throwline amongst 10’ of rhododendrons or carry a ladder is impossible especially since decades of garden rubbish has been tipped over, so spikes it is.

I tried to teach myself how to climb like a jungle native with a strop between my feet and shin up but could never manage it.

 

[MattyF]

I can remember watching a climber dead Wood this beech on a Saturday morning back in the late 80’s ...I’m pretty sure he was wearing spikes ,years later we braced the same tree with cobra and I’m pretty sure the marks near George are spike marks as they ran in a consistent pattern.

[TIMON]

And only wear pruning spikes, more pro looking.

Are they the ones with the non-marking rubber tips?

[carlos]

id say only on removals unless you need them on a prune ie taking so many branches off theres nothing left to stand on in which case id say spike marks are the least of the trees worries!! not best practice but does seem to happen.

i wonder how does spike damage compare with pruning cuts in terms of the trees healing ability's?

[skyhuck]

When I first started line clearance 20 odd years ago, spikes were pretty much mandatory. On shutdowns speed was everything and when working live lines, throwing ropes is a bit of a no no.

 

I remembers spiking a beautiful Beech in a huge garden in the Lakes

 

Things have moved on some what since then. These days I only spike timber thats coming out.

[Steve Bullman]

45 minutes ago, MattyF said:

I can remember watching a climber dead Wood this beech on a Saturday morning back in the late 80’s ...I’m pretty sure he was wearing spikes ,years later we braced the same tree with cobra and I’m pretty sure the marks near George are spike marks as they ran in a consistent pattern.

Yep they look familar as spike wounds to me, they heal in an almost diamond shape

[Stephen Blair]

Maybe an OCD woodpecker!