Whilst an arborist is on site & strolling around your property you may hear certain terms or descriptions which you may not understand. Maybe you received a written quote & again there are certain brief descriptions for the pruning of your tree which your uncertain about. Here are a few common terms or descriptions which most arborists if not all will use whilst providing you with advice or a quotation.
Trunk or Barrel: This is the main solid structure of the tree which provides strength & support. Attached to the trunk are all the branches & leaves which provide the crown or canopy.
Crown or Canopy: This is the area of the tree which contains all the branches & leaf matter.
Crown Lift or Raise: This is when the very lowest branches are pruned or removed to allow more room underneath the tree. Reasons to consider this are to allow more light on to your garden, to clear service wires, gutters or maybe just to clear branches which are growing across the garden & get in your way whilst mowing the lawn.
Crown Reduction: This is when the whole tree canopy or crown is made smaller & reduced in size. You may consider this if you have a tree or bush which you enjoy but it’s begun to get a little too big for the area it’s located. Rather than remove the tree completely it maybe possible to reduce its size by pruning the length of the branches to make them shorter. When done properly your tree should still retain a good healthy looking canopy although this may not always be possible.
Branch Reduction: Similar to a crown reduction but isolated to only a few or even 1 branch. You may consider this if you have a large branch overhanging your property & are concerned about it failing or the branch is dropping leaves & blocking your gutters. We can usually reduce the length of the branch without removing it completely & ruining the aesthetics of the tree.
Crown Thinning: Is the pruning of live tree canopy to reduce crown density. This is usually done by removing any rubbing, crossing, damaged or smaller branches which have the future potential to rub or place stress on other parts of the canopy. Reasons to consider crown thinning would be to allow more light penetration into your property, increase wind flow throughout the canopy & reduce wind shear on the tree allowing in theory for strong winds to pass through the canopy reducing the chance of branch & tree failures.
Dead wooding: Is the removal of any dead or dying branches in the tree canopy. This is usually done for safety reasons & aesthetics.
Pollard: This is when the whole canopy has been removed leaving just the main trunk & structural limbs. Certain tree species can handle such harsh pruning quite well & although the tree will look ugly & not aesthetically pleasing, we still get to retain the tree for many more years to come. Usually the tree will reshoot & within a couple of years have a vibrant healthy looking canopy. It’s recommended that the tree is regularly inspected & may require regular pruning every 3 – 5 years as this new growth, known as epicormic growth can sometimes be very weak & susceptible to branch failure.
Removal: This usually refers to cutting the tree down to ground level or getting rid of a branch completely.
