Fairhope, Alabama
CALLED 'POLLARDING'
Numerous crape myrtle trees around town were pruned recently because they had become overgrown in restricted space in city right of ways and to promote new growth and flowering in the Summer, according to public works director Richard Johnson.
'Pollarding' of trees (topping) to limit their size is a traditional practice that began in Europe in medieval times -- but has fallen out of favor with most botanists because it is considered not healthy for the plants.
" Pollarding, a pruning system involving the removal of the upper branches of a tree, promotes a dense head of foliage and branches. In ancient Rome, Propertius mentioned pollarding during the 1st century BCE.[1] The practice has occurred commonly in Europe since medieval times and takes place today in urban areas worldwide, primarily to maintain trees at a predetermined height."
TREE COMMITTEE NOT CONSULTED
At least one member of the city's tree committee is not pleased that the committee was not consulted, he says the pollarding was "done wrong" and it would have been better to remove problematic trees completely and replace them with a different species instead (or smaller species of crape myrtles).
CALLED 'POLLARDING'
Numerous crape myrtle trees around town were pruned recently because they had become overgrown in restricted space in city right of ways and to promote new growth and flowering in the Summer, according to public works director Richard Johnson.
'Pollarding' of trees (topping) to limit their size is a traditional practice that began in Europe in medieval times -- but has fallen out of favor with most botanists because it is considered not healthy for the plants.
" Pollarding, a pruning system involving the removal of the upper branches of a tree, promotes a dense head of foliage and branches. In ancient Rome, Propertius mentioned pollarding during the 1st century BCE.[1] The practice has occurred commonly in Europe since medieval times and takes place today in urban areas worldwide, primarily to maintain trees at a predetermined height."
TREE COMMITTEE NOT CONSULTED
At least one member of the city's tree committee is not pleased that the committee was not consulted, he says the pollarding was "done wrong" and it would have been better to remove problematic trees completely and replace them with a different species instead (or smaller species of crape myrtles).
Comments
Committee's solution: "kill the trees". That makes sense to me.
It infuriates me to have a mayor that defends and act of tree barbarism without even knowing that the tree committee was not consulted. I dont expect for a mayor to be a arborist but I expect her to consult with the right people. And when the time comes for her to accept that it was not the right thing to do!but not our mayor!