Our passion and purpose is to share the wisdom we have gained over a lifetime of saving and caring for trees.
Fifty years ago, as young urban foresters, we were taught that cutting the tops out of trees made them much safer. After much research and harrowing experience, we have learned quite the opposite. Tree topping actually weakens trees and makes them more hazardous as time goes by, even if they look safer. If you would like to know why, please listen with us, to the wisdom of the trees.
From above ground, it was the picture of health! Both of us, each with over 40 years of experience saving trees, looked at our 60’ Blue Spruce and never suspected that it was vulnerable. However, as we drove through town we noticed more Spruce trees down than any other species. Now we had to ask, why, what was going on?
Backyard Wisdom - March/April 2022
by: Gilbert A Smith, ISA Board Certified Master Arborist
I’m sorry to say it, but we had to take this tree down for safety reasons. But, it has a story to tell us, from the inside out!
This Norway Maple landed as a “whirly bird” seed on a bluff overlooking Lake Michigan in Lake Forest in 1960. I counted the annual rings as best I could. I guess everyone knows how to count the tree rings to determine the age of a tree. In April 2019 in our Wisdom From The Trees article Lesley and I talked about how trees grow and how they heal. Also Aldo Leopold, in his famous book, The Sand County Almanac explained the history in the rings of a tree.
