Is he serious?

[Run Forest Run!]

Apparently a tree trimmer came by my inlaws' house yesterday and took an 18" diameter branch off one of their silver maples. Granted, they had asked for advice about this because the limb was hanging precariously over the road. But, seriously?? Now??

So, a professional tree trimmer has cut this massive limb off a 80' high maple tree while the sap is flowing. I think I'll just park their gas BBQ under the tree with a giant SS pan on the grill and watch the waterfall of sap. What a pitiful excuse for an arborist. The poor tree.

[TreeTapper2]

"Just doin my job, mam."
"They don't hire me to think."

[Clarkfield Farms]

Did they hire him, or was he contracting for the municipality or utility company(ies)?

If for utility companies, I know firsthand that they're "not concerned with the health of the tree, only the uninterrupted continuance of (fill-in-the-blank utility)."

No pride. Unless you hire them yourself, but then they're crazy expensive, at least in my experience. I understand that they have insurance costs and other liabilities and overhead. When they're working for the "public," including the public good i.e. utility companies, they've protected from a lot of stuff they'd otherwise be liable for.

Disclaimer: Not the way it is everywhere. The above are only my experiences with such things, quotes indicate things actually said to me.

[Paddymountain]

I understand your saying no pride. But,I climbed trees for 11 years for a utility company, annd I assure you back in the day if you left a stump snag,or rip tear you heard about it.
I spent many a winter day up and down trees, freezing my buns off, just to make a living.One things for sure it sure gave me character, after doing that nothing seems impossible.

[Asthepotthickens]

Best time to cut a limb is spring and fall. No worries the tree will be fine.

[Burnt sap]

Sorry to hear that. We just started our tree farm last November I have a lot to learn about trees. But hell even I know not to trim a maple during the run.

[jrgagne99]

What's wrong with trimming the tree at this time of year? It's not like the tree is now condemned to die... While it wouldn't be a good idea to tap the tree right now (and maybe next year too), what's the big deal? Mother Nature's ice storms regularly break off limbs in the spring-time.

[Mark]

Apparently a tree trimmer came by my inlaws' house yesterday and took an 18" diameter branch off one of their silver maples. Granted, they had asked for advice about this because the limb was hanging precariously over the road. But, seriously?? Now??

So, a professional tree trimmer has cut this massive limb off a 80' high maple tree while the sap is flowing. I think I'll just park their gas BBQ under the tree with a giant SS pan on the grill and watch the waterfall of sap. What a pitiful excuse for an arborist. The poor tree.

At least they cut it off. On a couple of my trees along the road they used the bucket on the excavator to tear them off the tree. The branches were about 8 inches in diameter. The trees are now dead.

[bowtie]

the only thing i can say to that is if it was the gov't hired tree-cutter, they have to do it when they are told, not when it is convenient for anyone else. it really should hurt tree if it was done correctely. in some towns around here they use a thrasher to buzz up trees and brush on the roads sides. talk about ugly, nothing like leaving chewed up trees standing. they will literally "set" the blades on top of trees and chew up the side and leave it there and these are not clean cuts. it looks like a bomb went off. they will do this right in front of houses that are set back in the woods. i think personally it is lazy and the highway supers should be ashamed of themselves, no pride in the land.

[Run Forest Run!]

The guy that came and took the huge limb off the tree was sent there by the Township because the tree is technically within the road allowance. So yes, I'm sure they just do the job whenever the guy with the truck is in the area. This limb accounted for probably 1/4 of the canopy, so it was a pretty intense "pruning".

[maplekid]

was it stubbed or cut to a lateral limb. i work for asplundh tree service, trim trees for the utlity company. ive seen where road crews leave 4-5ft stubs without an sort of directional lateral limb. if done properly and cut to a limb the tree will resume normal growth patterns. a trees natural healing mechanish is at the collar of a branch. as long as it is flush cut to the trunk or to a directional leader it will be fine.

[Run Forest Run!]

was it stubbed or cut to a lateral limb. i work for asplundh tree service, trim trees for the utlity company. ive seen where road crews leave 4-5ft stubs without an sort of directional lateral limb. if done properly and cut to a limb the tree will resume normal growth patterns. a trees natural healing mechanish is at the collar of a branch. as long as it is flush cut to the trunk or to a directional leader it will be fine.

Thanks for the info maplekid. From what I saw as I drove by, it appeared that it was cut flush to the trunk. I feel much better now. :)

[happy thoughts]

The guy that came and took the huge limb off the tree was sent there by the Township because the tree is technically within the road allowance. So yes, I'm sure they just do the job whenever the guy with the truck is in the area. This limb accounted for probably 1/4 of the canopy, so it was a pretty intense "pruning".

I feel your pain Karen. We had some (non maple) trees butchered a few years ago at our other house. I swear I grieved for weeks. :(. You're right that's it's probably not the best time to prune maple but what can you do. They're not thinking about the tree. They're thinking about road safety and power outages and what they can work on before pothole season. I know that's small comfort. There's still a good chance the tree will recover and go on to produce lots of sweet sap again. Then you can call it your miracle tree and make lots of miracle syrup :)

[maple flats]

If cut properly it will likely be good as new in 2 years, however ugly and out of balance it looks.

[SevenCreeksSap]

was it stubbed or cut to a lateral limb. i work for asplundh tree service, trim trees for the utlity company. ive seen where road crews leave 4-5ft stubs without an sort of directional lateral limb. if done properly and cut to a limb the tree will resume normal growth patterns. a trees natural healing mechanish is at the collar of a branch. as long as it is flush cut to the trunk or to a directional leader it will be fine.

Maplekid is exactly correct about the proper way to trim, and if it was cut properly, this is actually a better time to trim it than when it starts to regrow again in the spring, , if I am reading the papers correctly on the ISA (International Society of Arboriculture) site. we may not like it as sap gatherers, and may see it as a waste, but the scientific consensus generally is that trimming during sap flow does not significantly harm the tree. if it is a collar cut, the tree should heal properly and be ready to tap after healing, probably at least a year or two. Believe it or not, utilities and municipalities actually do spend very large amounts of dollars studying proper ways to do this, and though don't always have the luxury of doing every job at the exact proper time for every tree, they do have and most try to follow the industry Best Management Practices. There is a whole industry built around utility and municipal vegetation management. They always have to weigh their service management and requirements, public safety, state utility commission rules, and even federal rules on the transmission side. unfortunately, the tree usually loses the battle with a street or power line.

an excerpt from the ISA site, an article on debunking common tree myths:

"Most routine pruning to remove weak, diseased, or dead limbs can be accomplished at any time during the year with little effect on the tree. As a rule, growth is maximized and wound closure is fastest if pruning takes place before the spring growth flush. Some trees, such as maples and birches, tend to “bleed” if pruned early in the spring. It may be unsightly, but it is of little consequence to the tree."

For full disclosure, my comments come from experience on the utility vegetation management side, but I am also a sugarer. Maybe Dr. Tim has some better insight on this topic from the scientific side, if he sees this thread and weighs in.

[Run Forest Run!]

I'm starting to feel so much better about what I originally thought was a really stupid thing to do. Thanks to all of you who offered your insight and experience.

[Randy Brutkoski]

Trees grow every day. I wouldnt worry about it. I think i am going to start dropping trees tomorow for next years wood.TIMBER...

[Marcus]

A few years ago the electric company said they needed to prune my silver maple in front of my house. I told them if they cut it like some down the road that they might as well plan on taking it to the ground. I came home and they did a great job, as i had to look close to see what they had pruned

[Mark]

Your lucky they did a nice job. For a half mile along my bush they cut to the right of way and then ditched. The ditch dried out the next row of trees and most died. The trees had exposed roots and they could not handle it. One tree was leaning towards my tubing and they were too lazy to deal with it so they dug the roots out on three sides and left it with the intention of it eventually falling on my tubing.

Then the DNR survey crew shows up marking the section corners. With no trees left in the right of way so they come on to my property with an axe and paint to mark a tree. Then in the middle of my bush they put a 1/4 section marker and take an axe to three more really nice trees that I tap. Proceed to take the bark off in two places on each to nail a tag and carve numbers in the sap wood. The biggest one is now dead. In another area they cut down about ten trees for satellite reception and then laugh about cutting a 10 inch maple. I think at the time they thought they were on state land but were on mine. It could have been anything other than a maple and I would have not been upset. Then for a half mile through my bush on one of my roads they painted signs on my trees so loggers can find their timber sale. They put the state wood up for sale and I expected a bunch of loggers contacting me for access but did not get one call. Many bids and the winner expected me to take my tubing down on my land so he could go through and bulldoze the trails flat to get semis in. Not in my lifetime.

[maplekid]

depending on the species of maple,after a year or so your tree will start to form water shoots . these thin shoots will produce leaves which will make up for the loss of the photosynthetic leaves that have been deleted . tree will look unsightley but it will regain to full health. theyve been around for thousands of years and are pretty resiliant.