Big stub- leave it or cut it

NickfromWI

King of Splices
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So I got this big tree I'm dealing with. It's becoming quite famous/infamous around here. Aleppo pine. Approx 100ft tall. 43" DBH. 3 trunks. Super good health.

A while back one of the trunks broke out of it. Now there are 2 trunks and one stub...approx 16" diameter and maybe 8 ft long.

Would you cut the stub off...knowing just the information I told you? You can see the stub in the green circle.

Aleppo_8ft_Stub.jpg

love
nick
 
Leave it.

Let it codit....

You have any positions open? Just curious what your pay rate is....
 
Leave it nick. Best to have the rot a fair distance from the main stem and not compromise the whole tree. Crown redn whole of tree in anticipation of the aforementioned
 
I would remove it and leave a substantial stub. Additionally, (because of the catface) I'd remove those two back leaders to lighten it up.
 
Agreed. With a thinning(crown reduction) over time in anticipation of future rot at the proper time of year. Basically a combo of what three others have said.
 
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  • #9
I think thinning and cabling are in the works. I'm not sure about overall reduction. I'm usually opposed to that.
 
That tear out will codit like crazy and be stronger than the original branchh IMO. I agree with Nick on the reduction. Just a proper prune and cable for failure mitigation over targets. In WINTER
 
Reduce stub to a growth point just below the breakage. Attach a birdhouse to the wound to cap it and slow cracking and rot.

Clean jagged tissue in catface. Light reduction of overextended tips.

Reduce those 2 leaders MB referred to, to take strain off catface aka codom tearout wound. Removing them would disturb the dynamics tooo much. or cable them; hard to say which is best as viewed from NC.
 
Shorten the stub somewhat for sure. Dynamic cable? I've noticed if you go back later and make an effort to paste the pitch evenly over the whole wound it will damn near petrify with time, kind of turns into a cap that the tree eventually envelopes (not in this case). Seals out bugs and whatever else too. . .

Thing is a beast.
 
Walk away, it'll do fine.

Treelooker and I have a different opinion...he's probably more correct for how to treat these wimp urban trees :).

JK, well a little :D.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #17
Walking away isn't an option. Local utilities are fighting for massive hacking. They want the tree gone. Teams of lawyers are involved. Multiple arborist reports have been written on this tree. My job is to help the local utility see how little needs to be done to the tree so that we can do as close to "walk away" as possible.

They've specified the stub as a point of concern. They r dumb :)


love
nick
 
Reduction is 1st choice. Mother nature will do it in her own time for free or you can get her some help and get paid for it. Wind rain ice sow or all of the above or Arbclimber with tools and fair amount of sympathy for tree longevity
 
Walking away isn't an option. Local utilities are fighting for massive hacking. They want the tree gone. Teams of lawyers are involved. Multiple arborist reports have been written on this tree. My job is to help the local utility see how little needs to be done to the tree so that we can do as close to "walk away" as possible.

They've specified the stub as a point of concern. They r dumb :)


love
nick

Then do as Treelooker suggests, cut it back to the closest growth point so as to give maximum distance between rot entry point and main stem...as others have also suggested, too.

I'd pass on the birdhouse idea, though :D. Won't do a thing to protect that wound. I think open exposure is better.
 
Reduce stub to a growth point just below the breakage. Attach a birdhouse to the wound to cap it and slow cracking and rot.

Clean jagged tissue in catface. Light reduction of overextended tips.

Reduce those 2 leaders MB referred to, to take strain off catface aka codom tearout wound. Removing them would disturb the dynamics tooo much. or cable them; hard to say which is best as viewed from NC.
 
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