I stopped using a topping cut on my city's park trees and the change was huge

For years, our crew did what everyone else did and topped the big silver maples in Riverside Park every five years to control size. About three years ago, I started leaving the central leader and only doing proper reduction cuts on side limbs. The before and after is wild. Those same trees now have way fewer water sprouts, the canopy looks natural, and storm damage went down by maybe 70% last winter. Has anyone else pushed back on the old topping habit and seen results like this?

3 comments

3 Comments

dylan_brown303mo ago

Wait, storm damage actually went down after you stopped topping them? That's crazy.

baker.holly3mo ago

Seems like a stretch to me.

the_fiona3mo ago

My own trees looked like a mess for a few years, honestly. But the stronger branch structure they grew really did handle high winds better. I was as surprised as you are.