Q. I hope you can
view the pictures that are attached. As you can see, one of my shoestring
acacia is growing out on an angle and my fear is it will get to heavy and
topple. Is there any way to save this tree by putting a support under the trunk
or topping it by cutting it back? It was planted 7 years ago with two others
and this is the only one that is doing this. It is about twenty feet high or so.
in your setting.
are two things I am noticing from your pictures. First to answer your question,
make sure the tree is getting water at distances equal to at least half the
canopy area under the tree. You can do this by adding emitters or a water
source in scattered areas under the canopy.
only water sources are close to the trunk, the roots may stay too close to the
trunk and begin falling over when it gets top heavy. By putting water further
from the trunk it encourages a larger area of support for the tree and its
growing canopy. These emitters under the canopy can be used to support other
plants as well so that it is not just watering the soil for weeds to grow.
b |
| Plant roots in container are circling. Bad, bad, bad. Borrowed from http://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/container11.shtml |
Lawns around
trees also help to support tree root growth that keeps trees from toppling
over. Roots do not grow “in search of water” but will grow only where there is
water in the desert. Rainfall does not count in a true desert like ours in the Mojave.
tree or shrub was purchased in a container and the roots began circling in the
container (the plant was overgrown in the container), they may continue to
circle once planted and never create a strong foothold in our desert soil. The
roots circle and circle and never spread out like they should.
top gets big, these trees with circling roots tend to lean or blow over in a
strong wind. They can become a liability as they get older. Unfortunately these
plants can never be rescued and must be removed to prevent loss of property or
cause safety concerns.
buy plants in containers where the roots have grown in circles inside. They can
never be established as healthy trees that are safe for public or private use.
What to do? Determine if the plant is a liability or not. If it is, remove it. To determine if it should be removed, put enough weight on the trunk to see if you can get the trunk to move enough to get it to move back and forth. While moving it back and forth, look at the soil beneath it and see if the soil is moving or if the trunk is securely anchored into the soil. If the soil moves around the tree, you will have to remove it. It is a liability.
If not, you have time to try to re-establish the roots farther from the trunk and give it more stability. This tree is too close to that wall and will probably damage the wall in future years.
I have a tall (40-50') shoestring acacia tree that is too close to the house. The problem is that the leaves accumulate on my flat roof and clog the scuppers. This has caused interior floooding on occasion as the water overwhelms the vents and skylights. My question is, can this tree be topped, or does it need to be removed. Thank you, Lorraine
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Yes, you can take the top out of this tree. It then becomes a question whether you want that type of look or not. If not then of course removal would be your only option. If you decide to move ahead and take the top out of the tree you will need to find a spot or spots to cut where the form of the tree continues upward. Otherwise it will look like a crew cut hair cut or flattop. You would do this by identifying the branch or branches which are giving you height above where the leaves collect. Trace this branch or branches down to a lower side branch. You would make this cut about 1/2 inch above the side branch. You would do this and all of the locations contributing to this height. Professionals would call this "drop crotching". By doing it in this fashion, you will retain as much of the form of the tree as you possibly can. If you cut all at one level (topping) it would look like a flattop.
Branches are just falling off my shoestring acacia. What can I do? Why is that happening?
Can you send me a picture of your tree to [email protected] and I will try to answer your questions. I want to know how old the tree is and how you are watering it. How many days each week? How many drip eimtters are you using? How many gallons of water is the tree getting? If you dont know the gallons then tell me how many drip emitters and their sizes and minutes of irrigation. It sounds like a watering issue. Either watering too often or not giving the tree enough water when you irrigate. The drip emitters should be about two feet apart in a pattern under the canopy that is nearly equal to the area under it. The water should be enough gallons from each emitter to wet the soil 13 inches deep. Then no water until it begins to dry. In summer this can be twice a week. In winter this can be 10 days apart.