Perry Templeton wrote:

I am whiling away the hours..waiting for the storm to pass. We are on the
coast and Hurricane Katrina is heading sort of our way. (we are southwest
of New Orleans)
I had a eucalyptus tree that was growing near a carport post. I'm not sure
of the variety, but it is a fast growing tree. Makes round silver
leaves...something euca. globe? Anyhoo this thing has grown soooo tall in
such a short time that we've had to tie it to one of the porch posts. Twice
wind has taken it and laid it down, but after tying it back up, it does
fine. Nothing fazes it.

As a preemptive measure, we topped it and cut about 5 or 6 feet off the top.
I'm thinking and hoping that cropping it like that won't do it any major
harm and that it will recover and branch out some more. Am I correct?
Perry

Those who advised against topping apparently have no experience
with eucalyptus. They respond quite well to being cut, not merely
topping but severely cut back.

Cut the tree at about waist height. It will resprout at the cut.
Wait about a year. Select what you consider to be the best shoot
and remove the others.

If you wish, redo the cut at an angle away from the shoot you keep
(similar to how you cut a rose, angling away from the growth bud
you expect to sprout). You do this after removing the unwanted
shoots. This "sculpting" of the cut is optional.

In about 5 years, you might not even notice that the tree was ever
cut. In 10 years, no one can tell.

Repeat every 5-10 years to keep the tree in check. Save the larger
pieces of tree. Stack them where they can dry. They make a very
aromatic firewood.

Four acres of some eucalyptus varieties are sufficient to supply a
family with a permanent source of firewood for cooking, heating,
and hot water. You harvest one acre each year and let it dry until
the next acre is harvested. After four years (after the other
three acres are harvested), the first acre has enough regrowth to
be harvested again.

--

David E. Ross
URL:http://www.rossde.com/

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