Summer branch drop ( Berlin )

[slack ma girdle]

Water stress, it causes the tree to shed a limb(s) to reduce its water consumption ????

[Arctostaphylos uva-ursi]

I understood that that was one theory but have yet to see any concrete research that confirms it as the cause.

[Gary Prentice]

For the unenlightened, is there an accepted cause?

 

Only hypothesis' about tensile strengths and water content relationships, as far as I know.

[farmer rod]

Thanks for the replies, Ive seen quite a few boughs that didnt seem to have a good reason to fall down, I will try to be more observant and note whether they snap away from the trunk as opposed to the usual tearing at the union, and what the weather was like on the day.

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

I recall reading somewhere that somebody had a theory (how random is that..... Almost "a bloke down the pub said....") that after a long dry spell a sudden downpour can lead to a rapid uptake of water causing cells to rapidly expand and essentially explode.

 

Standing by for ridicule

[Gary Prentice]

I recall reading somewhere that somebody had a theory (how random is that..... Almost "a bloke down the pub said....") that after a long dry spell a sudden downpour can lead to a rapid uptake of water causing cells to rapidly expand and essentially explode.

 

Standing by for ridicule

 

Don't think your far wrong. An explanation I read did highlight those climatic circumstances as a precursor in a number of cases.

[treeseer]

Overextension is always a big factor, sometimes primary. In the pics here, tree #1 seems to have had a lot of decay from prior damage, and #2 was a codom failure. Neither SBD, strictly speaking.

[Old Mill Tree Care]

Water stress, it causes the tree to shed a limb(s) to reduce its water consumption ????

 

 

I'm a nutshell, that's what I'm referring to.

[Mick Dempsey]

It's been discussed before on here by the great and the good.

 

There is no definitive or universally accepted explanation up to this point.

[Mick Dempsey]

I recall reading somewhere that somebody had a theory (how random is that..... Almost "a bloke down the pub said....") that after a long dry spell a sudden downpour can lead to a rapid uptake of water causing cells to rapidly expand and essentially explode.

 

Standing by for ridicule

 

It's a nice theory but it doesn't tally up with the usual weather conditions (from what I've read and experienced) (

It's always been after/during a long warm/hot spell.

Edited September 22, 2016 by Mick Dempsey