Beeches previously topped

[Vushtrri]

Good morning…..along the side of our property are a row of Beeches that the previous owner topped himself to heights varying from about 15 to 20’.It looks a mess..even more so when not in leaf.. I’m aware of the ‘controversy’ surrounding the issue of topping and it’s possible consequences so my question is ..have I really got anything to lose by bringing them all down to about 8’in an attempt to try and make a hedge of it? As it stands at the moment the lower 8’ along the length of the run is almost a hedge with the current growth..

[Dan Maynard]

Angle the cut on some, leave others level, and see if it makes any difference - I'm not convinced it will but the idea is persistent so would be great to do a test to compare. Please report back in a few years when the first ones are decaying.

Edited November 9, 2022 by Dan Maynard

[Vushtrri]

10 hours ago, Bolt said:

Good result on getting them down.

 

Working in someone else’s tangled mangled mess is never easy.

 

Personally, if the now deceased cherrys are anything to go by, I’m not certain that anything else you do to the beeches will make much difference.

 

Beech are not renowned for their ability to respond well to pollarding, or chucking out much regrowth.

 

If there is plenty of growth low down they may make a hedge of it.  If so, angling the final cuts will certainly do no harm to their chances though.

 

If you’re lucky, they will turn out to be hornbeams! 😊

Alas, not Hornbeams, which as the dog will testify, make wonderful chews as they don’t splinter…they’re more like a Cheesey straw!

[peatff]

47 minutes ago, Vushtrri said:

Beech are not renowned for their ability to respond well to pollarding, or chucking out much regrowth.

 

We found that as well, ended up taking down to ground level

[Stere]

Was a goood thread already on looping beeches:

 

Seems they can be topped if done right but i assume thoose pollards  were mostly created before the trees got so mature.

 

 

Restoration of lapsed beech pollards:
Evaluation of techniques and guidance
for future work

 

http://www.historictreecare.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/Read-et-al-Arb-Journal-2013.pdf

Edited November 10, 2022 by Stere