Forks Sold
Monday, October 25th, 2010 |
 1 LOT STERLING FLATWARE MASTER BUTTER LETTUCE FORK HORSERADISH SOLD AS SCRAP $64.39 Time Remaining: 5d 13h 58m Buy It Now for only: $99.99 |
Forks Sold
Prevent Storm Damage by Inspecting Trees
On May 4, 2006, west Austin had a storm which had winds clocked between 68 and 74 miles per hour - essentially a hurricane with trees carrying a full load of new growth. An equal opportunity storm, live oaks, post oaks, pecans, hackberry, chinaberry, Chinese tallow, cedar elms, etc. all received varying degrees of damage. Cyclonic winds twisted off beautiful, clear wood from a few oaks and elms and there was nothing anyone could have done about these few trees. The cause of the failures that ran consistently across most species was poor pruning in the trees’ past.
Tree and/or branch failures most often seen were in over-pruned trees – trees that were pruned to resemble native live oaks with stripped interior crowns. Tree care companies, which sell “crown cleaning that includes the removal of interior foliage to “reduce the wind sail” actually caused the trees to break because the “sail” and the weight is left on the branch tips. With interior foliage which would naturally buffer and reduce the branch sway gone, the trees broke by the thousands.
Old (and some new) flush cuts gave way to longitudinal cracks, which formed on horizontal limbs. Inverted forks which could have been saved if someone had sold cabling (or properly pruned these trees earlier in their life) also were the cause of many limb and trunk failures.
Today, Austin is left with even more crown reduction pruning to be sold than ever before. By reducing the length of the branches by coming back to an interior fork, you can force new growth to redevelop back towards the center of the over-pruned tree. You will also reduce the likelihood of additional storm damage while making the tree stronger by increasing branch taper.
It is not an easy sell, but something the industry needs to look at it we are going to continue to hold our selves up as tree experts. For too many years, the industry has sold “thinning” as proper pruning. Thinning today means reducing the amount of foliage on the end on the branch, not the interior of the canopy. Two thirds of the crown should be in the lower half of the tree’s overall height. Too often, more than 2/3 of the crown (and frequently all of the crown) is located in the top 1/3 of the tree.
If you haven’t visited the ANSI Cabling and Bracing Standards lately, perhaps you should look it over once again. Cabling of weak, or inverted forks is something very frequently missed.
Too often, arborists overlook the effects of gravity. Working 24-7 in a straight downward vector, gravity will break even the strongest oak. Even wide-angled, “u-shaped” forks will break if the trees have been over pruned to the extent that the crown only exists in the upper 1/3 of the tree. Also realize that multi-trunked trees can’t develop roots opposite their lean often because the adjacent trunks prevent roots from forming where they are needed most.
If you will look for these potential failure points in trees, you can prevent or limit storm damage to your trees.
About the Author
Patrick Wentworth is a certified arborist and biologist that has been studying and working with the environment for the last 35 years in Central Texas. Pat’s company, Austin Tree Specialists, has been caring for trees and landscapes in Central Texas longer than any other company in town under the original ownership. Services offered include pruning, removals, cabling and bracing as well as arborist reports, diagnostics, pest management, oak wilt treatment, and fertilization. Find out much, much more at www.austintreespecialists.com.
they are mostly sold out where might one get fork handles for halloween?
dont that £ shoppe of yours have them,.!
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