A shaping pines?

[John Paul Sanborn]

Taking such a large portion of a top out of a mature tree sounds sketchy to me, eastern white pine does not compartmentalize well. I've been in a number of them that storms have taken the tops out, and there is always a good sized pocket of decay there. Seen a few I could have dropped trow and used as a commode, and I need a wide load sign on my posterior (being near seven feet makes it appear proportional)

I still sell a few shapings every now and then, but i too inform the client that it will require regular revisits. I hate calling it pruning, to me to prune implies one is working within the constraints of the trees growth patterns.

Still do a few pinch prunes too, nothing works better than to take the terminal candle off to keep a pine looking full and dense.