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Arboriculture & Urban Forestry Online
Volume 6, Issue 4 — April 1980
https://www.isa-arbor.com/Publications/Arboriculture-Urban-Forestry

Structural Development of Trees    (View PDF)

Richard W. Harris

Abstract: To develop a tree that is structurally strong, it should be trained to exploit the better elements of its branching pattern and growth characteristics. A tree develops a welltapered trunk, better able to distribute stress uniformly along its length, if it is grown with more than one-half of its foliage on branches that originate from the lower two-thirds of the trunk. Branches are attached to the trunk more securely if they are well-spaced vertically along the trunk, are thinner than the trunk where they arise, and have wide angles of attachment. An unstaked tree can move in the wind, resulting in a shorter tree, with larger trunk caliper, greater taper, and a larger root system better able to withstand the elements without support. Stakes and ties detract from tree appearance and can seriously injure the trunk. The angle at which a main branch grows can be directed by pruning to a more upright shoot or by leaving a spreading branch to be more horizontal.

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https://doi.org/10.48044/jauf.1980.028


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