Lopping the problem trees – 1st May 2018

We still have some non-native trees on the property, but we are slowly removing them all.

Among those are the big Jacaranda and the similar sized Poinciana. Both these need a chop back as they are very shady.

Getting up to the branches that needed chopping was not easy.   But we do have a selection of ladders, so we found the right one in the end.

Stability and security are important when you are waving a chainsaw around 3-4 metres in the air.

We took the largest north-facing branch of the Poinciana, and it immediately opened up the view and the light reaching the backyard.(Below)

Next in line was the Jacaranda.  Two large north-facing branches were removed and again the effect was instant.  More light and more view.(Below)

We probably should have done this last winter.

Last in line was the dreaded White Cedar(Melia azedarach).  This tree, though native, is a pest here.

It produces masses of small fruit which many of the birds love, but it drops them over a large area and we get hundreds of seedlings.  The seedlings appear in the gardens, and vege beds and lawns.

We also have to watch where we dispose of cedar fruits, because they will grow it just about any place on the property

We lopped one major branch on the north side of the tree, and didn’t do too much damage to the vege plot below.(Above)

Again we got some huge improvement in light and outlook.

Our plan is to keep lopping branches of these major trees over time, and as other trees that we have planted start to grow we will remove the trees completely or kill them in place.

Shame to lose nice big trees, but they do no belong here, and are pests.  With our tree count now around 2000 planted..  losing a tree of two is not too bad.