Re: Help! (damage to a very old Pinus pinea)
- Subject: Re: Help! (damage to a very old Pinus pinea)
- From: &* G* <p*@gmail.com>
- Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 12:52:17 -0700
On 10/12/07, Sean A. O'Hara <sean@gimcw.org> wrote:
> (Posted for Cali Doxiadis . . .)
>
> Within the last 3 days this gash has appeared on our near century old umbrella
> pine (Pinus pinea). It runs from about a foot off the ground to as high as I
> can see, at some point winding round the trunk. It does not seem to go very
> deep (only an inch or so beyond the bark) and there are no scorch marks
> anywhere, which would seem to belie the local wisdom that it was caused by
> lightning. (We have had several thunderstorms in the last week) No sign of
> insect life.
> It looks ominous....
> Any ideas anyone? Help!
> Cali Doxiadis
> Corfu, Greece
It appears to be torsion damage from wind load, especially since it
winds around the trunk along the grain of the wood. I imagine that the
crown of the pine was getting rotated during the wind event,
especially since that species of pine has rather broad and large
crowns. I am not sure, but that crack might cause it to split in the
future (don't take my word for it, landscapers here can give you a
better assessment, probably).
