Pollarding
Pollarding is a
woodland management method of encouraging lateralbranches by cutting off a tree stem two metres or so above ground level.
If
pollarding is done repeatedly over the years, a somewhat expanded (orswollen) tree trunk will result, and multiple new side and top shoots will grow on it.
The main reason for this type of practice, rather than
coppicing, was in wood-pastures and grazing areas where growth from the ground upwards was less practicable, due to the required area for grazing which would have been reducedby thickets of low tree growth. Pollarding above head height also protects valuable timber or poles from being damaged by browsing animals such as rabbits or deer.
An incidental effect of pollarding is the encouragement of underbrush growth due to increased levels of light reaching the woodland floor. This can increase species diversity. However, in woodland where pollarding was once common but has now ceased, the opposite effect occurs as the side and top shoots develop into trunk-sized branches. An example of this occurs in
Epping Forest in
London/
Essex,
UK, the majority of which was pollarded until the late 19th century. Here, light levels on the woodland floor are extremely low due to the thick growth of the pollarded trees.
Good examples of trees which are regularly pollarded are
willows in areas surrounding meadows. The technique is also used in
Africa for
Moringa trees, to bring the nutritious leaves into easier reach for harvesting. Pollarding is also used in
urban forestry in certain areas for reasons such as tree size management, safety and health concerns. It removes rotting or plagued branches for the overall health of the tree, living and dead branches that could harm property and people, as well as expanded foliage in spring for aesthetic, shade and pollution concerns.
A tree that has been pollarded is known as a
pollard. A tree which has not been pollarded is called a
maiden or
maiden tree; which also refers to the fact that pollarding is normally first undertaken when the tree is quite young.
The term
pollarding is also sometimes used in the practice of
arboriculture for a particular form of tree management. This consists of the removal of all minor branches of a tree to leave just the trunk (to at least head height, or about 2 meters height) and a framework of major branches. The tree is then given some years to regrow, after which the process may be repeated.
Oak trees, when very old, can form new trunks from the growth of pollard branches - i.e. surviving branches which have split away from the main branch naturally.
See also:
pruning fruit trees,
Shredding*
London UK Royal Parks
