Topping trees increases disease, pest problems

Limbs are strewn across the yard as a chainsaw cuts into the tree's bark. Another receives a buzzed haircut.\nThe act of tree topping, which is the extreme removal of big branches on older trees either for aesthetic or practical purposes, can be seen around Indiana. Many homeowners top their trees when they feel the limbs have grown too tall and become unsafe.\n"Tree topping is a huge issue in this state and across the nation," said Pam Louks, community and urban forestry coordinator for Indiana and the Department of Natural Resources. "The cases of tree topping found in Indiana are too numerous to mention. I see it in every city I go to."\nAlthough tree topping is a statewide issue, very few naked trees can be spotted locally.\nLee Huss, certified arborist and urban forester for Bloomington, said there have been few cases of topping around Bloomington. There are currently about four or five such cases.\n"People are not aware that they are actually killing the trees and creating hazard trees instead," Louks said. "It opens trees up to pests and disease and creates risks."\nTree topping cannot be confused with how the utility industry cuts trees for clearance, which is done to keep the vegetation out of the power lines, he said.\n"Utilities are now doing natural target pruning, which makes the tree into a 'v' shape," Louks said. "They cannot plant trees more than 25 feet under power lines, so that it will not be necessary to cut the trees."\nHuss and Louks both said the community should be educated of the hazards of tree topping; They prefer suggesting various alternatives for tree care and maintenance.\n"What we have done in the past when there have been local cases of tree topping is attempt to educate people," Huss said.\nThe Journal of Arboriculture, in addition, lists pruning as a good alternative to topping. This is a process of cutting off certain branches and pruning them back to side branches that are lower on the tree, which will downsize the height of the tree while still maintaining its original shape.\nLouks said people fear that their trees might break or hit their homes, so they thought this was the way to care for them before topping.\n"It is important to understand what the person's concern is," Huss said. "Sometimes there are certain trees it would be more beneficial to remove and then replant. Once that is determined, explain to them that there are alternatives to tree topping. It is suggested that they always use a certified arborist."\nLouks said Bloomington has received a grant from the Department of Natural Resources to place anti-tree topping ads in the phone book next to the ads for landscapers that advertise topping.\n"We received a grant recently from the DNR to do more education," Huss said. He said there will be a booth at the Garden Show from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 16 at the Bloomington Convention Center, which will include information on tree topping.\nHuss said education is key because there is no national ordinance against tree topping.\n"We can't stop what people want to do on their private land," Huss said. "Instead, it is our job to educate people on the correct way to go about caring for their trees."\n-- Contact Staff Writer Dana Sands at dsands@indiana.edu.