southsoundtree
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Olympia, WA
Can people provide links to research on wind thinning/ windsail reduction on conifers.
It seems that there have been different ways that people approach this, and is commonly marketed in the tree care industry.
Some clear out the interior canopy, others remove branches in a spiral around the tree, some do end weight reduction (which seems to maybe be different from windsail reduction, in that it can reduce the likelihood of individual branches from failing, while I suppose reducing the "wind profile").
Some refute the practice wholely, others have used it in timber stands to reduce blow-down along the edges of clear-cuts (or near clearcuts).
Any scientific research??
Topping was also an accepted practice, in the past, right?
We just removed a topped Doug-fir that is on the water on Puget Sound. The tree was naturally rotten on the inside. The homeowners have a much larger tree next to it. This has also been repeatedly topped, but much larger, around 100+', and 4.5'-ish DBH. They mentioned that they had it "wind thinned" several years ago. Is this helping a tree that is already under stress?
Let me frame the our local situation. We have a lot of excurrent trees, predominantly, in Olympia, Doug-fir, Western Redcedar, Western Hemlock, various other conifers, bigleaf maple, alder, some cottonwood, etc. We get windstorms off the coast. Mother Nature cleaned house about three and four years ago with lots of blowdown on timber land and residential areas, alike.
With housing development, second growth forest is being cleared, partially or wholly, resulting in a lot of remnant trees that have a higher center of gravity, which is now getting more and more exposed to wind. As well, there are a lot of open-grown trees that used to the higher wind-exposure throught part/ all of their growth. These are often canopy raised somewhat.
People have asked for wind-thinning because they have had laypeople tell them about it, and because tree workers have told them/ marketed it to them.
I am trying to get some strong evidence about wind sail research and found effects to have some honest, supported answers for customers, and effective recommendations on tree preservation/ risk management.
I am of the opinion that there is good and bad in all things, essentially. For example, dealing with a conifer with two, small co-dominant leaders means inflicting a pruning injury if subordinating, and will likely have a better structure. Each case will be different from another, and recommendations must be based also on the individual micro-environment.
Thanks for input.
It seems that there have been different ways that people approach this, and is commonly marketed in the tree care industry.
Some clear out the interior canopy, others remove branches in a spiral around the tree, some do end weight reduction (which seems to maybe be different from windsail reduction, in that it can reduce the likelihood of individual branches from failing, while I suppose reducing the "wind profile").
Some refute the practice wholely, others have used it in timber stands to reduce blow-down along the edges of clear-cuts (or near clearcuts).
Any scientific research??
Topping was also an accepted practice, in the past, right?
We just removed a topped Doug-fir that is on the water on Puget Sound. The tree was naturally rotten on the inside. The homeowners have a much larger tree next to it. This has also been repeatedly topped, but much larger, around 100+', and 4.5'-ish DBH. They mentioned that they had it "wind thinned" several years ago. Is this helping a tree that is already under stress?
Let me frame the our local situation. We have a lot of excurrent trees, predominantly, in Olympia, Doug-fir, Western Redcedar, Western Hemlock, various other conifers, bigleaf maple, alder, some cottonwood, etc. We get windstorms off the coast. Mother Nature cleaned house about three and four years ago with lots of blowdown on timber land and residential areas, alike.
With housing development, second growth forest is being cleared, partially or wholly, resulting in a lot of remnant trees that have a higher center of gravity, which is now getting more and more exposed to wind. As well, there are a lot of open-grown trees that used to the higher wind-exposure throught part/ all of their growth. These are often canopy raised somewhat.
People have asked for wind-thinning because they have had laypeople tell them about it, and because tree workers have told them/ marketed it to them.
I am trying to get some strong evidence about wind sail research and found effects to have some honest, supported answers for customers, and effective recommendations on tree preservation/ risk management.
I am of the opinion that there is good and bad in all things, essentially. For example, dealing with a conifer with two, small co-dominant leaders means inflicting a pruning injury if subordinating, and will likely have a better structure. Each case will be different from another, and recommendations must be based also on the individual micro-environment.
Thanks for input.
