What is pollarding?

How it differs from topping

A pollard is built from the start: the tree is headed at a chosen height when young, and the shoots that sprout from that point are removed every year or two before they grow thick. Over time the cut points swell into knobby heads, and the new growth is always small and young.

Topping is a one-time chop through large limbs at random heights, leaving stubs that sprout weakly attached shoots. The ANSI A300 pruning standard does not accept topping, and the industry guidance is not to pollard a tree that was not trained that way. See why topping is not pruning.

Why it matters in Northern Nevada

Pollards are old practice for willows, London plane and a few other species in Europe, and a few are found here on street and plaza trees. On most residential lots in Reno and Carson City a different question comes up: a neighbor or a former owner topped a tree, and the owner wonders whether it can be turned into a pollard. Usually it cannot, because the cuts were made through big wood and the regrowth is already weakly attached. That tree needs crown restoration or removal instead.

Pollarding also commits the owner to the schedule. Skip several years and the shoots grow too big to cut back cleanly.

What an arborist does about it

The arborist looks at the species, the age and the history of the tree and tells you honestly whether a pollard is possible. For most mature trees the better routes are reduction cuts to a smaller crown, or removal if the tree is too large for its spot. Battle Born does not top trees. Ask the arborist at the estimate which approach fits yours.

If you inherited a topped tree and are not sure which of the two you have, look at the cut points. Smooth, swollen knuckles with thin new shoots point to a managed pollard; ragged stubs with thick sprouts point to topping.