Am I the only one who thinks climbing spikes on live trees is lazy? I've got a trick that changed my mind.

I used to be dead set against spikes on any tree that wasn't coming down. Thought it was hack work, pure and simple. Then I got a call last spring from a property manager in Phoenix who wanted a 40-foot mesquite cleaned up fast. Those things have thorns like daggers and I couldn't get a rope in the canopy without getting shredded. So I strapped on spikes for the first time in years and got it done in 2 hours flat. Felt dirty about it but the tree didn't seem to care and it's still alive today. Now I'm wondering if there's a middle ground between never using them and using them right. Have you guys ever made an exception on a live tree and had it work out fine?

2 comments

2 Comments

felix_martin5610d ago

Buddy of mine runs a crew down in Tucson and he told me this exact story. He had this massive old palo verde that was dropping limbs everywhere after a monsoon. Property owner wanted it trimmed but no way to safely get a line in the canopy without climbing through all that crap. He finally caved and used spikes just to get up there and clean out the deadwood. Tree is still standing two years later looking healthy as ever. He said he felt like a traitor but the tree didn't even blink. Makes me think there's a time and place for everything even if purists hate it.

holly_flores797d ago

That's pretty much what we ran into with a big old live oak a few years back. Had to use spikes on one section because the branch structure made it impossible to set a line safely from the ground, and the deadwood was getting dangerous. Felt wrong doing it, but sometimes you have to pick between looking like a purist and getting the job done right. Like your buddy in Tucson said, the tree didn't seem to mind at all, and it's still putting out new growth every spring. Might not be the textbook method, but it got the job done without harming anything.