Hope to ask some advice. My neighbor has this ring of redwoods, five of them, from 2 to 5 ft in diameter.
They were all topped about 20 years ago. The topped trees have grown two or three tops in their crown.
There is some concern that, these sucker growth tops could split off, and send thousands of pounds of timber plunging into a nearby house from a height of 60 ft.
So is the solution to completely remove the trees? Or to just re-top them every 5 years forever? How dangerous is this situation?
by EnzoKosai
1 Comment
Conifers don’t respond to topping the way that broadleaves do.
Broadleaves produce epicormic sprouts, brand new shoots from just under the bark, which can be poorly attached due to their shallow origin, and may eventually snap out.
Conifers push existing laterals in to a vertical position with reaction wood (conifers specifically increase wood on the compression side to literally ‘push’ the branch up).
As long as the tops are not riddled with decay, I wouldn’t be particularly worried.
You could have someone out to inspect for decay and making pruning recommendations – perhaps reducing some of the competing leaders. There is no evidence that thinning is effective for reducing wind breakages.