Due to recent ice storms, two of my 30 year old green ash trees have had several main branchs snapped off,1/2 to 3/4 of the way up the main tree trunk, just missing my roof. My husband wants to top them and I want to take them down, just to be on the save side Should I top these trees or cut them down?
2007-12-14 03:57:50 · 6 answers · asked by Bernice G 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
I'll just say this briefly TOPPING IS BAD!!! It's an outdated practice that NO educated and certified arborist practices. Have them removed by a certified and licensed arborist, and ask them for some recommendations for replacements.
2007-12-14 09:46:09 · answer #1 · answered by Brian 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Call in an Arborist or Tree Surgeon for free advice and a quotation. They will be able to give you an accurate prognosis on the health of the trees and advice on the likely outcome of severe pruning. The torn-off limb wounds will allow easy access for fungus and bacterial growth, and will become a holding area for rainwater which too will cause decay in the canopies. If remedial pruning is possible it will produce dense re-growth which will need to be managed into the future. If they are a danger to your home, your household insurance might cover the felling of them. Have the roots ground out too and then you can re-plant something appropriate on the same site. If you are in the UK call your local Council to check if they have a TPO or are in a Conservation Area, if they are then their Tree Officer will advise on management of the Ash.
Good luck :-)
2007-12-14 04:15:02 · answer #2 · answered by Sandy Mac 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'd top them. Ash trees recover well from hard pruning. Mother Nature just did a good job of pruning most trees in your area. Ice is a disaster and the trees will show scars for many years.
2007-12-14 05:10:31 · answer #3 · answered by DR_NC 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
save the money you'd spend on topping them and use it to take them down....
topping a tree is not the best thing that can happen to one.... the wood that grows after the topping is weakly connected to the main trunk and will be apt to break again in another ice happening.... plus, there's nothing natural about the look of the tree, ever again... lollipop in green... icky.....just give them a decent funeral, please.......
2007-12-14 06:37:27 · answer #4 · answered by meanolmaw 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
meanolma is right.topping them does more harm than good.plus it looks awful.call an arborist and have them cut the branches back to the branch collar.it should heal its self in time,and still have a natural look to it.
2007-12-17 08:14:18 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would recommend that you just have them topped and trimmed for winter. They will come back next year looking like an apple on a stick. How pretty is that?
2007-12-14 04:06:18 · answer #6 · answered by killbasabill 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋