crown reduction

[chris cnc]

had a go at my first crown reduction today (had to finish early because or the wind, finishing off tomorrow).

 

i was surprised at how difficult it is getting right out onto the tips of branches, especially when there is nothing suitable above for a secondary anchor. it feels a lot more exposed out on the ends too.

 

ive done some thinning/ deadwooding before but reductions seem a lot more difficult to me, having to move around the extremeties of the tree whilst trying to get a good work position to make your cuts.

 

anyone got any tips for getting out on the, er, tips?

 

cheers!

[Bolt]

congrats Chris,

 

what species was it, how much did you have off, a do you have before and after photos?

[Johny Walker]

what wind ??

[Bolt]

what wind ??

 

*derail alert derail alert*

 

hi mr woodpecker, which gods own county would you be in (as a matter of interest )

[chris cnc]

its a sycamore, customer wants 1-2 meters taken off all round, its in an ideal spot, middle of a lawn, and nothing underneath to break/squish. ive got a before picture, but ill post it, with an after, when the job is finished!

 

yeah the wind was flappin me about all over the place so we got on with some other jobs around the same site, bit of pruning here and there nothing exciting

[Bolt]

1-2 meters off a sycamore sounds like a job for life.

 

I guess its not a particularly large tree, therefore, You would do well to get youself a sturdy main anchour, one that you really trust and are happy to "push" against. That one is mainly to keep your confidence happy! As you move around the tree use additionals that are for positioning, but wont be so sturdy. Lots of people find having a few webbing slings ideal for these anchours. When you reach out to do the cuts, avoid the urge to do it "face down" as your anchours won't support you. Sit back in your harness and streach out so that you are almost in a lying position. this gives you "length" and support.

 

what were you cutting with, saw? loppers? or Secateurs?

[chris cnc]

cheers for the advice, Bolt, much appreciated!

 

basically we took some dead wood out and pruned a couple branches back yesterday, using a silky, no problem..

 

today the first branch we pruned was around 4-5 inch across, cut it no problems, but straight away the wound was dripping sap, quite heavily.

 

i know acers can bleed when pruned at the wrong time but i was surprised that March is too early!

 

after consulting the customers ( the tree is a centerpiece of the garden with sentimental value ) they are undecided whether to continue with the reduction.

 

how signifigant is sap bleeding on a semi mature sycamore at this time of year?

 

any input appreciated

[AA Teccie (Paul)]

cheers for the advice, Bolt, much appreciated!

 

basically we took some dead wood out and pruned a couple branches back yesterday, using a silky, no problem..

 

today the first branch we pruned was around 4-5 inch across, cut it no problems, but straight away the wound was dripping sap, quite heavily.

 

i know acers can bleed when pruned at the wrong time but i was surprised that March is too early!

 

after consulting the customers ( the tree is a centerpiece of the garden with sentimental value ) they are undecided whether to continue with the reduction.

 

how signifigant is sap bleeding on a semi mature sycamore at this time of year?

 

any input appreciated

 

 

Hi Chris, it isn't really ('significant'), the sap bleed, BUT no educated clients always relate to the tree 'bleeding' and if it has sentimental value this may be hard for the to stomach (sounds mad I know but I've been there.)

 

Perhaps suggest continuing in mid-Summer when trees will 'bleed' much less, if at all, but then you risk the little 'flying things' scupperin the job if they decide to nest.

 

Remeber also, something as an aside n Syccie is always pretty tough, that 'Shigo' would advocate avoiding pruning, in particular reductions, when the buds are swelling as it's a period of high (stored/potential) energy use to activate growth AND pruning has a 'double-whammy' effect in create wounds (requiring more energy use for 'defense') and removal of potnetial photosynthetic material, i.e. leaf supporting twigs and branches. Not always easy to get a workable solution from this, and loadsa pruning happens at this time of year with seemingly little effect, but it's something else to bear in mind.

 

Good luck with it n gudon'ya for seeking advice!

 

Cheersss.

Paul

[Doug Blease]

The best way to deal with strong wind is to put your ear defenders down. Then the wind dies down with it!

[chris cnc]

Cheers for the advice there, i did a bit of reading up on this last night and apparently the sap "bleed" helps prevent pathogens entering the wound so may not be as bad as it looks.

 

also it appears that the sycamore is difficult to reduce whilst keeping a natural shape, due to the branch structure caused by opposite buds.

 

i think they're going to wait a while to do the work, which is fair enough, the pruning certainly isnt urgent and the tree nice and healthy.

 

shame though cos i wouldn't of minded a couple more days there, endless cups of tea as well as fruit toast, cheese slices, hobnobs and cereal bars provided all day haha.

 

the customer even brought out a couple of photos of an arborist in the tree when they first had it pruned, 11 years ago!