Topping is perhaps the most harmful tree pruning practice known. Yet, despite more than 25 years of literature and seminars explaining its harmful effects, topping remains a common practice. This article explains why topping is not an acceptable pruning technique. Topping Stresses Trees Topping often removes 50 to 100 percent of the leaf-bearing crown of […]
Category: Why Topping Hurts Trees
Topping is a high-maintenance pruning practice, with hidden costs. One is the reduction in property value. Healthy, well-maintained trees can add 10 to 20 percent to the value of a property. Disfigured, topped trees are an impending expense as well as hazard. The cost of topping a tree is not limited to what the perpetrator […]
The preferred location to make a pruning cut is just beyond the branch collar at the branch’s point of attachment. The tree is biologically equipped to close such a wound, provided the tree is healthy enough and the wound is not too large. Cuts made between lateral branches create stubs with wounds that are difficult […]