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Cabling to support weak crotches, or to brace any of a tree's upper parts by fastening them to other parts, is done with galvanized twist wire in gauges that run from ^4- to %-inch. The cable is fastened to hooks or eyes that may be of the lag (screw-in) or bolt-and-nut type. Loops in the unraveled cable's ends are fashioned by wrapping its separated strands back around itself with pliers. Cables should be installed while trees are in leaf, so that tensions can be properly adjusted, again using the "come-along" to ensure tension enough. The hook or eye should be placed at one-half to two-thirds of the weak member's length above the crotch. The cable should run upward at about forty-five degrees to another hook or eye in the supporting member. (In cabling a tree's tops together for mutual support, this angle can be much less, or even horizontal, the main thing being to oppose weights and stresses judiciously.) A composite of noosing, cabling, and rodding a weak-crotched tree is shown in Fig. 12.
Under no circumstances should trees or their members be braced by passing wires, cables, or chains around them. |
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