Spruce thinning

Treeaddict

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Harford county MD
So a friend/neighbor told me he had large spruce trees in the backyard. During a bad storm, the top blew out of one of them. This was the only one without a target- thank God. These trees are approximately 75’ tall and 36” dbh by his description. He wanted to cut the tops off the rest of them so they couldn’t hit the house. I told him that I believed the upper limbs would bend upwards and make 2 new tops (I know this is true with at least some conifers) and decay would set in.

I haven’t ever pruned a tree like that to make it wind resistant. I’m sure there are techniques. Yes, they could be removed but I’m interested in thinning them to reduce the sail effect.

Has anyone done this or have good resources?
 
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So every other whirl is a technique. That seems east enough to carry out. Topping seems like something that would be a very very last resort- either the top goes or the tree goes kinda thing. I suppose once it’s topped, it will have to be maintained as such?
 
Reg Coates had some nice vids on 'wind firming' , I looked but couldnt find them for ya
 
A spruce's "thing" is it's pleasing shape. I'm having trouble seeing a topped spruce as anything but ugly, but maybe it could be done.
 
the upper limbs would bend upwards and make 2 new tops
Or 3 4 5 ..., the tree get as much new tops with interlocking limbs instead of just one initially. The global width depends of the limb's diameter ( the big limbs are harder to curl up and take way more space to acquire the upright position.). So far for the thinning and windfirming.
If the topping cut stays in the small diameter range, like sapwood only, it can avoid the rot, as the living wood is able to actively defend itself somewhat. But if there's heart wood, it's an easy game for the appropriate fungi to invade and hollow the trunk. The last level of limbs (becomming actually a set of new trees) ends being very weakly anchored and may fall apart.
Friday, I had to "refresh" a spruce trimmed and topped at least three times previously. The top was a giant compact mess, like if I was under a Golliath sized hedge. I needed to cut my way through the top layer like a manhole to get access at the i don't know how many small tops.
 
I did a job earlier this year taking down 2 Norway Spruces that had been topped 20+ years earlier (as I counted that many rings+ on each stem I topped). Each one had at least 3 distinct tops that had grown where the topping cut was made. They surprisingly held their shape well, but all the tops went straight up, except one that got crowded out and went 25 ft. sideways. Trees were about 85' at the tips.
 
Old Italian landscaper was sick of limbs/trees hitting his rental property. He had me remove all the tall conifers in the back yard (as 2 others had hit the house in the last 5 years); the 2 Niorways, a nasty tripled stemmed Scotch Pine (topped as well), and 2 others I never id'd. All 60+ ft. high, and all multi-stemmed with tight drop zone/fence issues. 2.5 trucks of chips, and 4 trailer loads of wood. Took 5 days w/various help scenarios over a 4 week period.
 
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