treeseer

I agree the crack looks suspicious. Cabling would take ~1.5 hours and <$100 USD materials. We can schedule that mid-May if you like.

Not frequent if cuts are small. (not really pollarding then but retrenchment actually)..Last poplar I reduced (in Canada last summer) we spec <5 cm cuts all over. The regrowth will be mostly on the interior, not at the cut surfaces, so it will be well attached. No reason to cause a lot of rot is there? A pole pruner was essential as those branches were snapping off under my feet if i was not careful. The objective is to make reduction cuts so that branch tips are left intact on the outer edge of a new, smaller canopy.”4 …Reduction pruning anticipates the natural process of “growing downward.”5 …”A 15% reduction can increase the stability of a branch6 or a tree7by 50%. 5. Ancient Trees * Growing Downwards: An ageing strategy for survival and longevity – a non*arborists view. Green, Ted 2009 http://www.treeworks.co.uk/downloads/Veteran_Environmental_Papers/Growing_Downwards_ancient_trees_Jan_05.pdf Page 4 6. Fracture Diagnosis of Trees Part 2: statics-Integrated Methods - Statically-Integrated Assessment (SIA) The Practitioner's Method of Diagnosis Lothar Wessolly Stadt und Gruen 1995, No. 8, 570-573 7. Final Report: Development of Risk Criteria for Branch Failures within the Crowns of Trees Goodfellow, John 2009, BioCompliance Consulting

Shigo 1986: "Wood altered as a result of a lean...(1/2 page of forestry stuff)..." pretty narrow.

Speaking of negative factors, how big a hole gets drilled for the throughbolts? A 1/4" hole holds a 3/16" cable. The holes callus well. No beetle issues here. I like your hanging plants though--biodiversity rocks!

To confuse matters further, aside from the drop-forged galvanized fasteners that require big holes drilled, there is through-cabling with terminal fasteners, either [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIlmX00jlMk]Rigguy - Wire Stop® - YouTube[/ame] or file:///C:/Users/guy/Downloads/sp3062-2wedgegripde__%20(1).pdf I've used both on dozens of trees. All are working successfully: the owners would be sure to let me know if they did not! If anyone wants to try them, pm me and I'll toss a few in the suitcase next month.

Have you read the tea leaves yet? ISA International Society of Arboriculture : compression wood reaction wood in gymnosperms, and some angiosperms, that develops on the underside of branches or leaning trunks and is important in load bearing.... holding wood section of wood located between the face cut and the back cut that helps direct where the tree will fall (see hinge).... reaction force force of equal magnitude exerted in the opposite direction of a force acting on a body.... reaction wood wood formed in leaning or crooked stems or on lower or upper sides of branches as a means of counteracting the effects of gravity (see compression wood and tension wood)....JUST LIKE WIKIPEDIA! reaction zone natural boundary formed chemically within a tree to separate damaged wood from existing healthy wood. Important in the process of compartmentalization (contrast with barrier zone).... soil reaction pH (acidity or alkalinity) of a soil.... summer wood see latewood.... tension wood a form of reaction wood in broadleaved trees (hardwoods) that forms on the upper side of branches or the trunks of leaning trees (contrast with compression wood)... A300 Standard's is better imo: Wood formed in response to mechanical stress or loading. (92.16) It IS externally visible, as when the orange inner bark shows through where there's rapid growth. imo. Nice work on the pdf tho; all that done for fun? Goodness.

After 48 years I split time evenly between pruning, consulting, and 'other' tree work. Lots of options if you tune into the tree and learn what you are good at.

Quite so; there are many shadows of doubt, in the open mind.

My apologies; no offense intended. Yes, it'd be a great discussion, but once terms are carefully defined, it might not be a long one. over a pint, perhaps.

A lovely compliment, even more so coming from England! The author will be pleased to hear it. My favorite snippet comes from his early professor: "All wood is reaction wood."

True enough, and easy to spot. Pictures say a million words. dieback can be the beginning of decline, or a portent to recovery. The tree cup is typically half full of potential.

Less leaves = less risk, so why fell? Good point re soil as cause, and focus of treatments.

On the oak, looks like a very old wound at and above the 'crook' where it failed. (very nice of the tree to fail away from the buildings) Lack of tree response = good idea to reduce. On the poplar, despite species reputation, there looks to be a very good response by the tree = less need to reduce?

Olaf has published a "Sourcebook of the genus Phytophthora"(1978) 420 pp. Presently used in over 85 countries and is also co-author with Professor Don Erwin (University of California), of the book Phytophthora Diseases Worldwide published by APS Press (1996). 592 pp. 2nd printing 2005. He spoke at one of the TEP sessions I believe. About I thought nukeandfell was US habit, and the UK would have a broader perspective.

Noisy stinkin chainsaws. A prune job without one is peace itself.

Well it's 30 minutes away, beyond free estimate territory. I quoted a ballpark range online, with disclaimers etc. to cover if I see something on site that changes the ball game. The wording is a tad rapturous but I've heard similar before and it turned out sincere.

Just got this email: "I took pictures of these trees in my backyard today to send to tree companies for quotes on trimming them back from power lines and over home. They have damaged the roof, siding and many more places over the past three years as strong winds have thrown branches. As I looked up at this amazing speciman, the experience was almost tear jerking to think it was have to be cut back tremendously. It is so beautiful how it spans out and reaches so high. Just wanted to share its beauty with you. I really wish the house wasn't built so close to it. I'm not getting much feedback from tree companies. How much would you charge to prune this beauty for the safety of the home and evaluate its condition. I am concerned that their may be some damage to the tree. Thank you for your time and what you do as a profession. The world needs more people like you."

The coppice idea sounds lower-maintenance--they sure won't stay at 3m for long! How high is the line going to be? Will both rows really be in the way? Who is writing that spec? Sealant would be pushed off; as The Stones said, Let It Bleed.

Depends on the definition; reacting to what? The US definition has to do with responding to movement, but some negatively assume it's reacting to decay or another 'defect'.

Nice catch--great reflexes!

Sorry but from the pic it's hard to say much about the branches. The contortive/reactive growth as said may be quite normal, and the lower ones may lack sun. It may get a bit too interesting when the old girl sheds a limb unannounced. Perhaps some improvement of soil compacted by humans might help ease this tree's condition, along with a closer look at that fork, which looks pretty narrow to me. If splitting is likely, a cable would be the least damaging and longer-lasting treatment.

Maybe not; the infection first indicates that dirt is on the stem, and the flare needs inspecting, and cleaning. Many trees recover from this; though not many have that unfortunate codominance!

Hoo boy ya got me there! I gotta fold for now; not sure how relevant this slight mutation is to the segmentation/column-forming process, but it is worth thinking about!

Well 10.4.3 seems limited to screws and bolts, however, since "Any user claiming compliance with this British Standard is expected to be able to justify any course of action that deviates from its recommendations.", it would be an easy matter for anyone knowledgeable to justify through-cabling with either of those end-fasteners. "If you took off enough weight to make a significant difference to the splitting force of teh dead load on the basal compression fork, wouldn't that cause the stem to straighten up, transferring compression into the fork and putting unaccustomed loads onto the narrow zone of adaptive growth at the poinbt of included bark? Wouldn't cambium at the margin be crushed?" Jules I don't think the cambium is all that fragile--crushed?--, but you do raise a good point, which supports the approach of not pruning away tree benefits, but instead installing supplemental support. Scraping away the included bark might facilitate grafting of the cambium on both sides, thus ending the inclusion. The rest, why so quick to dismiss options and remove arboreal assets!

David, thanks for the math check. I underestimated that guidance by 20%; mea maxima culpa. fagus, why would you take some weight off? I am sure those pruning works would acknowledge there is a fault in the tree. More info on tree and site conditions needed to make a prognosis. I've worked on many trees that were much larger and much closer to a residence. The owners were not cowering under their beds in fear of that proximity.