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Tree Cabling & Bracing

Using Structural Support Systems to Remedy Unstable Trees

Tree Cabling, Bracing, and Staking

When trees are not properly pruned or trained when young, they can grow in ways that threaten their structural integrity, and therefore the safety of people, pets, and buildings around them. Mature trees with two or more trunks are particularly susceptible to this condition. Tree support systems — cabling, bracing, and staking — can be appropriate remedies for trees with structural deficiencies and instability. SavATree’s highly qualified arborists will inspect your trees to diagnose any structural deficiencies that present risk to the trees and surrounding property. They will then advise you if a supplemental support system is appropriate to remedy a structural problem, and if so, recommend the best type of system for the tree.

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Benefits of Professional Tree Care

Reduce Risk

Reduce Risk

Trees are both assets and liabilities. Protect your property with expert tree care that mitigates risk, minimizes hazards, and ensures a safe environment for all to enjoy.

Adhere to Requirements

Adhere to Requirements

Meet safety and environmental requirements while enhancing the property’s aesthetic appeal. Our professional tree care solutions are tailored to each property's unique needs.

Identify Challenges Early

Identify Challenges Early

Address potential tree health issues before they escalate. Our proactive care services identify and correct problems early, saving you from costly damages and preserving your landscape’s beauty.

Restore Tree Health

Restore Tree Health

Restore your property’s trees to their full glory with precise pruning that promotes healthy growth, improves structure, and enhances the natural beauty of your landscape, ensuring vibrant, resilient trees.

Treat Diseases Quickly

Treat Diseases Quickly

Our specialized treatments help protect your trees from common and emerging diseases. Early intervention and ongoing care keep your trees healthy for a lush, thriving landscape year-round.

Benefits of Professional Tree Care

Would your trees benefit from supplemental support systems?

Professional arborists make decisions very carefully about whether to install tree support devices like cables, braces, and stakes. These mechanisms support the tree by limiting the movement of branches or leaders (the main vertical stems) or providing extra support to weak areas of the tree. However, this support hardware is also intrusive and restrictive for the tree. So in determining the best course of action for an ailing tree, our arborists weigh the risks and rewards.

Only a qualified arborist should install tree support systems. They have the training and experience to determine the best support method, select the right materials, and install the system using the most effective and least damaging techniques.

Types of Tree Support Systems

Cabling and bracing are the most commonly used tools to protect or improve a tree’s structural integrity. Staking methods are used less frequently but are sometimes needed to support a newly planted tree while it establishes a supportive root system.

Cabling

Cabling reduces the risk of breaking or splitting by restricting the distance branches or co-dominant leaders can move in relation to the rest of the tree. The cables are typically installed in the upper crown or across a weak crotch (the bottom point of connection between two or more tree limbs or trunks). Traditional static cabling systems are made from high-strength, long-lasting steel wire and hardware, and allow for very little movement in the tree. Newer dynamic cabling systems are made from synthetic fabric roping and sling attachments; the “give” in the dynamic cabling allows for more natural movement in the tree. Your SavATree arborist can determine which type of system is best suited to your tree and property.

Bracing

Bracing rods are installed in trees with multiple or co-dominant leaders to reduce the risk of the leaders splitting or to repair splits that have already occurred. The rigid braces are installed directly through the union of the weak branches and stems — either as a “through-rod” (where the rod is inserted through the trunk or branch and bolted with a nut on either side) or a “dead-end” brace (where the rod is threaded directly into the tree trunk or branch). Bracing rods are combined with cabling to gain the most stable support.

Staking

Staking is a support method used to hold a tree upright and the root ball in place, or to straighten the trunk. Staking can involve tying rigid stakes to a young tree’s trunk, or affixing three or four wires or straps (known as guys) to the tree and then anchoring the guys to the ground with stakes or other hardware.

Staking can be useful in certain circumstances. It is most typically used on a newly-planted tree to give added reinforcement while it establishes enough of a root system to stand on its own. Perhaps the tree has a small root system that cannot support the expanse of branches and leaves above it. Or maybe the tree is planted in a very windy spot that puts it in danger of being uprooted. Sometimes even more mature trees that are damaged by weather events can periodically start to uproot, and staking them in their correct and upright position can help them re-grow their root systems.

As with any supplement support system, our arborists employ staking only when necessary, and for the shortest time possible. The chance of injury to the tree increases with the length of time the strapping devices are attached to it. And when staking the at-risk tree, arborists ensure the application allows for some degree of movement. Why? When a tree is allowed to sway in the wind, that swaying movement triggers the growth of important structural fibers at the base of the trunk. 

Early attention is the best prevention. Avoid the need for supplemental support systems.

Many structural defects that lead to the need for supplemental support systems can be prevented with proper pruning and maintenance throughout a tree’s life. By scheduling a SavATree arborist to care for your tree every two years from the time it’s planted, you can significantly reduce the risk of these issues developing. Learn more about our pruning services and other tree care options. Click to learn more about our tree pruning services and other tree care services. Ready to set up a complimentary consult now? Contact us today.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • As certified arborists, we provide expert, tailored care for your trees and greenery, using science-based solutions to meet your unique landscape needs.

  • Yes, our organic program uses OMRI-reviewed ingredients, and we customize programs with organic, traditional, or hybrid options to suit your landscape goals.

  • Yes, we provide customized landscape care, risk assessments, and consulting for commercial properties to enhance curb appeal, protect value, and ensure safety.

  • We’re reducing our carbon footprint through operational improvements and hybrid/organic programs, and our Consulting Group supports large-scale environmental projects at all levels. Our product selection is guided by agroscience and a three-tiered protocol to ensure environmental safety, efficacy, and cost. All our regulated ingredients are EPA-approved.

  • Yes. Our ISA Tree Risk Assessment Qualified Consultants perform industry standard tree risk assessments. We follow all national safety standards (the ANSI A300 Part 9 standards, using the formula Probability x Consequences = Risk).

  • Yes. We offer plant health care services tailored to each unique property to properly support plant vigor, growth, and lifespan. Our arborists diagnose and treat insect and disease conditions to provide customized treatment plans for each unique species.

  • SavATree offers organic, traditional, and hybrid lawn care programs. Unlike other companies whose treatments are one-size-fits-all, we target our techniques and applications to the specific conditions of your grass and plants, the soil they’re growing in, and any other aspects that can impact the health of your turf.

  • SavATree is the leader in tree, shrub, and lawn care, with an award-winning team of ISA Certified Arborists. We tailor programs to enhance the safety and beauty of your property. A SavATree arborist will assess your landscape and provide a cost-effective, eco-friendly plan before our crews begin.

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