Room To Grow

• Trees in an overly crowded forest grow tall, with slender trunks that stretch toward the sunlight. Thinning a stand of trees opens areas for the strongest, healthiest trees to develop to their full potential. Removal of diseased, damaged or stunted trees allows more light to reach the forest floor. Thinning a forest grove increases its growth rate, enhances economic potential, maintains insect and disease resistance, improves forage production, wildlife habitat and the visual appearance of the forest.
  
  

Lifespan

• Birch trees (Betula spp.) are examples of relatively short-lived trees. Although birch trees sometimes survive for 50 to 75 years, the majority of birch trees planted in a landscape setting have a lifespan of less than 30 years. In a crowded tree stand, it is wise to remove trees with a short life, such as birches, to give longer-living trees an opportunity to grow and develop to full maturity.
  
  

Culling

• Trees that show evidence of cankers or large, twisted knots may need to be removed. Cankers or knots are weakened points in the tree. These trees are the most likely to fall during a wind storm or heavy snow accumulation. When these trees fall on healthy trees, they can cause considerable damage. Careful removal of deformed trees opens up more growing room for healthy trees and removes a hazard to their survival. Harvested trees can be used for lumber, firewood or chipped to provide landscape mulch.
  
  

Fire Damage

• When a forest fire sweeps through a stand of trees, some may be destroyed while others are still viable. While the fire may appear devastating, many trees have the potential to produce new growth and survive. Removal of dead trees helps open up space for healthy trees to spread a broad canopy and establish a strong root system.