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Topped or Badly Pruned Trees
in Rochester, MN
You see topped trees all over older Rochester areas like Pill Hill and the South Broadway corridor. The work was often done years ago to keep a tree from growing into power lines or because someone thought it made the tree safer. It does the opposite. Stubs left by topping rot from the cut face inward toward the heart of the tree, and the fast-growing water sprouts that replace the canopy are weakly attached from the start.
Quick Answer
Topping means cutting a tree's main stems down to stubs. It was common practice in Rochester neighborhoods through the 1980s and it causes serious problems. The stubs rot from the inside and sprout dozens of weak shoots that grow fast but attach poorly to the trunk. Those shoots fail in wind and ice storms. The fix is either corrective pruning over several years or removal if the trunk is already rotting.
Telltale Signs
Warning Signs to Watch For
- Multiple thick stubs at the same height across the top of the tree
- Dozens of long thin shoots growing straight up from the stub ends
- Hollow or soft wood visible inside an old stub when you poke it
- The tree has a flat-topped silhouette that looks unnatural
- Several of the fast-growing shoots have already broken off in storms
- Fungal brackets or mushrooms growing on or near the old cut stubs
Root Causes
What Causes Topped or Badly Pruned Trees?
Improper Stub Cuts Left to Rot
When a tree is topped, the cuts are made in the middle of a stem rather than at a natural branch union. The tree cannot seal over that kind of wound. In Rochester, where trees go through long wet springs and hard winters, rot sets in quickly and works its way down through the stub into the main trunk within a few years.
The Fix
Corrective Pruning to Natural Unions
A trimmer removes the rotted stubs back to the nearest living branch or the trunk, making the cut at the proper angle so the tree can seal the wound. This stops the rot from going deeper.
Weak Water Sprout Growth
After topping, a tree pushes out fast-growing shoots called water sprouts from just below the cuts. These grow two to four feet in a single season but they are attached to the outer layer of wood, not rooted deeply into the trunk. Rochester ice storms put hundreds of pounds on those shoots, and they snap at the base without much warning.
The Fix
Selective Water Sprout Removal
Most water sprouts need to come off. A trimmer selects a few with good angles that can eventually replace the lost canopy and removes the rest. Over two or three growing seasons, the tree can develop a more stable structure.
Self-Diagnosis
Which Cause Applies to You?
Check the signs you're observing to narrow down the likely root cause before your inspection.
| What You're Seeing | Improper Stub Cuts Left to Rot | Weak Water Sprout Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Flat stubs are visible at the top of the main trunk | ||
| Dozens of thin, fast-growing shoots radiate from the stub tops | ||
| Soft or hollow wood inside a stub when probed | ||
| Several shoots broke off during the last ice storm | ||
| Fungal growth on or near old cut stubs |
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