A STAND OF STUB CUTS

This one was a real shocker. I was on my way to my favorite eatery when I gasped at the sight of what happened to these trees! I immediately pulled over and took out my camera and tripod. I could not pass up the opportunity to capture this brutalization someone called pruning. I examined the large bole cuts and found no evidence of rot or disease. The trees were quite healthy. They were Acacias! Hardy species.

As I set up, two little girls walked into the photo to be a part of it. I guess they just wanted their photo taken. One of them finally asked why I was taking the photograph. I explained that I thought the trees had been badly mistreated and they agreed. Said they didn't like it when it was happening.  

The entire grove was subsequently removed but not until it stood for a couple of months along one of the busiest streets in town. There has been no subsequent replacement of any of the trees. I wonder why they were removed.

I CAN'T GET ESPN. THERE'S A TREE LIMB ON THE CABLE.

An excellent example of poor "line clearance" hacking done for utility companies. P.G. & E. as well as A.T.&T. and Comcast sub-contract to companies that have specially trained units that do nothing but keep trees planted in the wrong place from interfering with their lines. When I write they are specially trained I don't mean in the proper ways to prune but to do it without injury and keeping the wires/cables operating. Unfortunately there are many examples just like this all over the place. Instead of trying to prune and shape the tree, in this case an Acacia, the hackers just stub cut anything that had foliage that was or might contact lines the company that hired them wanted to protect. The companies that do this are paid by contract. The faster they get the job done the more money they make. I have only seen rare cases where conflicting trees are pruning according to published standards. Careful tree selection is the most effective way to prevent this from happening. Select a tree that is suited to grow under power lines. P.G. % E. has an excellent program and information to help select the proper trees. I think this tree was just abandoned. The property owners didn't want to have the tree removed and once again, subjected their neighborhood to an unsightly and unnatural looking tree. Time is money. Aesthetics is another matter.