Cost of tree topping great
By ROBERT KESSLER Penn State Cooperative Extension Franklin County office

COMING EVENTS

April 17 - Franklin County Orchard Twilight Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Wit-lane Welding, 10520 Lincoln Way West, St. Thomas - Tour of Antique Machinery. Call (717) 263-2195.

April 17 and 24 - Beginning Beekeeper's Shortcourse, Franklin County Cooperative Extension office, call (717) 263- 9226.

April 18 - Cover Crop Field Day Walk, 10 a.m. to noon, Joe and Dennis Musser Farm, along Dream Hwy, Newburg. For information, call (717) 240-6230.

April 19 - Franklin County 4-H Dairy Calf Sale, 7 p.m., C.V. Antique Engine Show grounds, Chambersburg.

April 21 - Franklin County Animal Response Meeting, 6:30 to 9 p.m., Franklin County Extension Basement meeting rooms.

May 3 - Container Gardening by the Franklin County Master Gardeners, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., pre-register by calling the Extension office at (717) 263- 9226.

May 5 to 9 - Water Testing, Franklin County Cooperative Extension office. Stop in to purchase kit and bring back 8 a.m. to noon May 13.

May 12 and 14 - Backyard Composting workshops and Free Bins, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Franklin County Cooperative Extension office. Call (717) 263-9226.

* * * * * TREE-TOPPING

Trees provide so much to our communities, our homes, and our lives. Healthy trees provide shade, reduce energy costs, prevent soil erosion, filter pollutants from the air and water, beautify our landscapes and increase property values.

Some become concerned when trees grow large and worry that branches will fall down, causing property damage or harm. They feel trees must be shortened or "Topped" to make them safer. In reality, tree topping hurts trees, shortens their lives and creates dangerous trees that will drop branches in the future. With proper care and maintenance, trees are safe.

Tree topping is the removal of large amounts of leaves and branches from a tree's crown. In some cases all of the leaves and branches are removed, leaving large stubs where branches were cut.

If you are topping a tree to make it smaller, DON'T. It doesn't work! After a tree is topped, it grows back rapidly in an attempt to replace its missing leaves. Leaves are needed to manufacture food for the tree. Without new leaves the tree will die.

If you don't want a tree to get too big, then it is best to remove the large tree and replant with a type of tree that doesn't grow too tall. You can't "stop" trees from growing tall by topping. If you do succeed, you have killed them.

A tree's leaves manufacture its food (Photosynthesis). Repeated removal of a tree's food source literally starves the tree over time. When it is topped it must use stored food (reserves) to grow back new leaves and branches.

Topped trees are ugly. They lose their natural, majestic look once they are topped. The new growth of thin upright branches looks like a broom to some. The natural form and appearance that took years for the tree to grow can be destroyed forever in a few hours by an uninformed tree worker or landscaper who tops.

Topped trees become hazardous. According to Dr. Alex Shigo, world renowned scientist and author of books on the care of trees, topping is the most serious injury you can inflict upon your tree.

Topping creates un-safe trees in three ways.

1. It opens the tree up to an invasion of rotting organisms. A tree can defend itself from rot when proper cuts are made in relationship with branch collars. It cannot stop the spread of decay when it is topped. Rotted limbs or the entire tree may fall years after it was topped.

2. The new quick growing branches (or sprouts) are weakly attached and break easily in wind or snow storms- even many years later when they are large and heavy.

3. The thick re-growth of new branches (sprouts) caused by topping make the tree topheavy and more likely to catch the wind. This increases the chance of storm winds blowing branches out of the tree. A tree can be properly pruned (thinned) to allow wind to pass through the branches.

When you think about it, the cost of Tree-Topping is greater than you think! Once it is topped, a tree must be topped every few years and eventually must be removed when it dies or the owner gives up. This will cost lots of money. Proper pruning actually improves the health and beauty of a tree, needs less maintenance and costs less in the long run.

Think before You Top your tree. Get the facts. Contact your local Penn State Cooperative Extension office, DCNR Bureau of Forestry office, or visit www.patrees.org to obtain free tree care information. Hire an ISA Certified Arborist to care for your tree. They've received extensive training and passed a comprehensive exam on tree care practices. To learn more about arborist certification visit www.patrees.org or www.treesaregood.com.

EASTERN TENT

CATERPILLARS

The eastern tent caterpillar will soon be starting to hatch out in our area so you may start to see nests once our trees start to develop leaves. They are commonly a pest on wild cherry trees along the road and in fence rows. They can also be found on apple and crabapple trees as well as hawthorn, maple, cherry, pear and plum trees.

The eastern tent caterpillar overwinters as egg masses on branches of the trees. The eggs hatch about the time the buds start to open. The caterpillars from the egg mass form a silken nest in the crotch of the tree. The tent is the home for the caterpillars where they will stay in rainy weather and during the heat of the day. Then they leave and go out and feed on the expanding leaves of the tree. As the caterpillars grow in size, they will expand the nest until it is 12 inches long or more. The adult caterpillars will grow to two to two and one-half inches long.

Generally the eastern tent caterpillar doesn't do much harm to the trees. They complete their life cycle quickly and the tree will grow back the leaves, but the loss of the leaves and the need to grow new leaves can weaken the tree. Most people are not too concerned about a wild cherry in a fence row, but if they get on your crabapple tree and other landscape trees, you may wish to control them.

When the nests are small, they are easy to remove with your hands and destroy the caterpillars. The young caterpillars are also controlled by various beneficial wasps that will attack them. You should not put a rag soaked in gas on the end of a stick and burn them in the nest. This can cause more damage to the tree than the caterpillars will cause. If you can't remove the nests by hand you can use a long stick to wind the nest up to remove it.

The young caterpillars can also be controlled with a spray application of an organic insecticide that has Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki. This Bt material works very well on young caterpillars, but once they get an inch or more long, control will not be very effective. You can also use carbaryl (Sevin) and Malathion and spray the foliage around the nest so they will be feeding on the sprayed foliage.

Robert Kessler is an extension educator specializing in consumer horticulture and energy issues.