I finally tried the 'hitch step' technique on a big oak in Piedmont Park

Was out at Piedmont Park last week and this old oak had a nasty co-dominant stem with included bark. I did a small cut on the back side first, then stepped the notch over about 6 inches, and it pulled the hinge perfectly without any barber chair. Has anyone else used this for tricky leaners with tight quarters?

3 comments

3 Comments

diana_west272mo agoProlific Poster

Wait, a six inch step on a co-dominant stem in tight quarters? That's wild. I mean, idk about doing a step that big when you've got included bark like that, seems like it could go sideways fast. I'm with @parker183 though, that technique is solid for leaners, but maybe it's just me, that notch size feels really aggressive for that situation.

parker1832mo ago

Yeah I read about that technique in an arborist forum a while back. Seems like a solid way to handle those leaners without the barber chair problem.

grace_campbell2mo ago

Is it really that serious though? People get worked up over notch sizes but the tree doesn't read the manual. Half the time it's about reading the wood, not the numbers.