coppicing squirrel damaged hornbeam

[skodajag]

I've got some hornbeam - between 15-20 years old - which have been severely attacked by grey squirrels. Fortunately the trunks were protected by netting (to prevent deer damage) so the trees are still good up to about three feet above the ground. Above that the bark has been pretty much stripped away. So I figure the best thing to do is coppice or pollard them. But I need to know the right time to do this - right now, or should I wait until the autumn, winter or next spring? Any advice most gratefully received. Incidentally, there's quite a bit of info on the internet about coppicing, but little or none that I could find on the precise times to do it for the different trees. Does anyone know a site that gives this information?

[openspaceman]

I've got some hornbeam - between 15-20 years old - which have been severely attacked by grey squirrels. Fortunately the trunks were protected by netting (to prevent deer damage) so the trees are still good up to about three feet above the ground. Above that the bark has been pretty much stripped away. So I figure the best thing to do is coppice or pollard them. But I need to know the right time to do this -

 

Traditionally November through to March, the idea being to not exhaust reserves in the of food in the parenchymous tissue of the stool as these are necessary to support the new shoots in the next growing season until new leaves can.

 

Unless your coup is a large one you will need to protect the new growth.

[Old Mill Tree Care]

I agree with those dates but it depends on the weather. If the last few years are anything to go by, best wait until the end of December.

Remember, a plant isn't dormant the moment the leaves drop.

[treeseer]

Impossible to say without a pic and knowing the objective, but if there is 3' unchewed it seems a waste to go to the ground. Cutting back to the first good undamaged node is the most conservative thing to do.

 

Also just because bark is stripped off does not mean that branches are no good--did the rodents gnaw off all the cambium and parenchyma too?

[coppiceer]

Impossible to say without a pic and knowing the objective, but if there is 3' unchewed it seems a waste to go to the ground. Cutting back to the first good undamaged node is the most conservative thing to do.

 

Also just because bark is stripped off does not mean that branches are no good--did the rodents gnaw off all the cambium and parenchyma too?

 

I agree. Sorry to hear about your troubles. I would undertake a careful survey of all of the trees to get the full scale of the problem. If the crowns of the trees are not dying then I would leave them and concentrate on the real problem: a lack of squirrel control. It will be easier and cheaper to control the squirrels than changing your management method and, then, having to cope with deer browsing off all of your coppice regrowth.

 

I you must coppice then, then leave around 8"-12" of stump; leave a clean sloping cut of around 30-45 degrees; and ensure that the stumps are not overshadowed by surrounding trees. A lack of light will kill off any new growth as surely as deer.