tree help

 Cheryl here in Southern NH, still recovering from "Snowtober"

Lost 4 of my poplars - three snapped in half. Should have cut the other
on down after hurricane Irene. Knew that one was on borrowed time....


but as to the snapped trees. Each one was about halfway up - between
15-18 feet up. I think the of the two that face the house, one has to
come down the rest of the way. There are no branches below the snap.

It's the other two that I have a question about - both have some
branches left. do you think they'll recover enough to continue to
provide shelter for local wildlife (birds, squirrels).

If it wasn't so ugly and depressing, I'd consider leaving the other to
see it would become woodpecker food. But I want a "pretty" view out the
front of the house.

Cheryl

 On 11/5/11 3:41 AM, Cheryl Isaak wrote:

All species in the genus Populus are fast-growing.  They should recover
nicely, but they might require corrective pruning after recovery.  Even
the one that has no branches should resprout.  Just leave all of them
alone until spring.  Pruning now will encourage new growth that will be
too tender to survive the winter.

Just watch out for root suckers, which are likely to result from damage
to the top.  If you don't remove them promptly, you will have a poplar
thicket.

--
David E. Ross
Climate:  California Mediterranean, see
<http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html>
Gardening diary at <http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary>

 On Sat, 05 Nov 2011 06:37:16 -0800, "David E. Ross"


I don't consider poplars real trees, they are horrid giant weeds with
no redeeming value whatsoever, they're for pinheads who are into
quantity at the expense of quality... fortunately poplars don't live
long.  My recommedation is to remove that trash and plant something
decent.

 I'm guessing you have Lombardy poplars, the tall, skinny jobs?  They're not
very long lived anyhow, and are probably close to the end of their lifespan.
Actually, most of the poplars have very short lifespans and usually brittle
wood.

Consider leaving the two remaining ones for a couple of years while you
replant the area with longer lived species.  Then when the new trees have
gotten established, take down the poplars.

Depending on where you are in NH and the ground temperature, it might be
possible (and perhaps even advisable) to get the new trees in ASAP,
like within the next week.  I'm on the other coast and about that
far north, and I'd still plant out here but that wouldn't be an option
in higher altitudes.

You might also consider some big, fast-growing shrubs for quick color and
form in your front yard, with the plan of taking those out when the new
trees get bigger.

 

I'd take those down now, get rid of those trash trees to make room for
real trees.  I've seen too many people waste ten growing years
attempting to grow a privacy screen of those cheapskate trees, they're
cheap but utterly useless... they can't screen because they're
deciduous, they never grow very thick anyway so they don't offer much
screening in summer either.  And lombardy poplar wins hands down for
the uglist plant on the planet.


Now that I know it's NH, as long as there isn't a problem with deer
munching, the perfect screening tree is Canadian Hemlock.  And one can
definitely plant them in NH now, they can even be planted in frozen
ground if one can auger through, back fill, and mulch heavily... for
total privacy, if one has the space, plant a double staggered row...
find at least five year old specimens from a local nursery, seedlings
are too iffy and take too long to look like a tree.
http://www.arhomeandgarden.org/plantoftheweek/articles/hemlock_canadian_1-18-08.htm
http://www.arborday.org/treeguide/treeDetail.cfm?id 2