THE CASEBOOK OF DR. D. R. SLATER No. 739: One Problem That Will Keep Coming Around… And Around…

Having just posted a post about post-failure diagnosis of root plate failures, here’s a “great” example of when no roots come out of the ground when a maturing tree fails in a storm.

This Norway maple (Acer platanoides) failed recently – but where are its roots? Well – it did have roots – but one in particular was wrapped VERY TIGHTLY to the base of its main stem – and the stem snapped at this point, where the girdling root went round and round its stem, throttling it off.

Girdling roots are a growing problem… I mean, we are getting to see them around a lot more… Err… You know what I mean. It’s not a ‘circle of life’ thing – rather, such encircling roots are a common cause of tree death!

Partly, this is producing young trees in containers: whatever the sellers might say to you, roots start to circle once contained. Partly it is the meagre tree pits we supply to them on city streets – sometimes less than 1 metre x 1 metre apertures for trees that could grow to a height of 20 metres or more. And in this particular case, it’s very much the species involved – as Norway maple really produces a lot of girdling roots, however which way you plant them. Indeed, I suspect this was a self-seed, given its location and age.

Sad to see – and sad to say that this problem for tree care is definitely doing the rounds in the UK

LESSON LEARNT: My research into natural bracing shows that bad things can happen when trees touch themselves (!) Girdling roots is another, similar example, where a root that should head outwards from the stem has malformed to “hug” the stem’s base – and it can be a lethal embrace! ??

#casebookofdrslater #trees #arboriculture #girdlingroots #rootmorphology #rootconstrictions #Acerplatanoides #Norwaymaple