Silver Maples - Dead Leaders

[Reach]

Happened to do this one last week. Tree in serious decline. Roots likely compromised by driveway and sidewalk, with more sidewalk work to be done soon by the city. Customer is fully aware of prognosis, but wants to preserve the tree for as long as possible.

Sometimes that is the thing to do, as long as they are aware of what is coming and that what you are doing is just a temporary measure. We have been doing the same thing with a really old Walnut at a historical site in our town. The tree is slowly dying, and has terrible decay, but it’s so historic the town wants to keep it.

 

[Tom Dunlap]

I call this regimen 'Amputation to Death' snd explain it thoroughly to a client. This is the minimum that can be done and is not likely to extend the life of the tree without getting more into PHC/root issues.

It surprised me how many times I did a 'One and Done' prune. My guess is that the top grew more than the root system could support. With less top the tree evened out.