With a dream to have a wholesome garden and lush green trees, people engaging in too much maintenance. They keep chopping and mowing unnecessarily. There are people who assume that topping or pruning the whole tops of the trees will result in better growth. However, the reality is it damages the tree to a great extent.
How can topping damage any tree?
Well, the topping does reduce the capacity of the trees to produce food for themselves. The larger the leaf surface area, the better it will be able to maintain its growth. Cutting off the major chunk of the tree certainly depletes their reserves.
If you think that topping is equivalent to pruning then it is a myth. What topping actually does is it stimulates the unnecessary growth in a tree. This way you will have a tree with most unattractive and upright branches. So, with topping, you will have a vigorously grown tree in an ugly manner.
One will notice that topping leads to large wounds that do not close easily. The insects and fungus attacks such trees the most. If you do not wish any fungal decay or pest invasion that will kill the tree, you should avoid topping the tree.
If topping is undertaken at the wrong time, it can lead to a hazard. This process weakens the stubs and exposes the trees to wind or storm making it vulnerable to breakage or decay. In simpler words, this will eventually lead to the death of the tree.
Is topping necessary?
Many homeowners invest in topping the trees if the trees reach an undesirable height. They assume that during the storms or rains the overgrown trees are vulnerable to falling and topping will take care of it. However, the topped trees are more vulnerable to falling branches. Hence, it is best to avoid the topping the trees especially in the wrong season.
Is there any alternative for the topping?
Pruning is the best option. The moment you plant and grow trees, you should be trimming and pruning it at regular intervals. If you are unable to track the right growth and maintenance of a mature tree, you can have a professional to take care of the same.
Drop-crotching is another technique that pulls down the tree’s size at the same time preserves its natural shape. In this process, the pruner will select only the higher branches and cut to laterals in a specific dimension.