Enough material needed to be removed to improve structure and reduce loading, but pruning wounds had to remain as small as possible to support recovery.
Jason viewed the tree pragmatically.
THE TURNER BROTHERS AND DETERMINING FEASIBILITY
“I didn’t think the tree needed to be cut down,” he said. “I told her, as long as you’re willing to invest in the ongoing maintenance of this tree, I think it’s reasonable to expect another three to five years out of it. But it’s going to be costly. It’s not going to be a one-time expense. You’re going to have to stay on the pruning cycles and continue maintaining it.” That conversation became the foundation of the project. Preservation was possible — but only with realistic expectations and a commitment to ongoing care.
“Jason was the first to look at the tree. Then he had me come out and look at it. The ques- tion we had to answer was, ‘Was the work even doable or practical for a climbing arborist to do?’ When I first looked at the tree, I had no concerns about it,” said E.J. Turner, who owns Turner Tree Specialists alongside his brother, Jason. “Other companies were concerned about the li- ability involved with working on a tree like this. Ameren had been pruning the tree for years prior to our work. I could tell a lot of weight had already been removed from the tree.” Turner Tree Specialists were selected to per- form the aerial work. Their involvement was critical. The brothers have built a reputation for execut- ing custom pruning prescriptions on technical- ly challenging trees, and this project demand- ed exactly that skill set. Beyond their climbing ability, both men had prior experience as Qual- ified Line Clearance Arborists, expertise that would prove valuable given the tree’s relation- ship with nearby utility infrastructure.
PRUNING OBJECTIVES AND ACCESS METHODS
The pruning prescription called for deadwood removal, the elimination of crossing and inter- fering branches, and reduction cuts on overex- tended limbs carrying excessive weight. For a species that often struggles to compart- mentalize wounds effectively, restraint was just as important as intervention. Enough material needed to be removed to improve structure and reduce loading, but pruning wounds had to re- main as small as possible to support recovery.
Image showing the defoliated, west-facing side of the canopy after the storm event of May 16th.
58 | Summer 2026 ArborTIMES ™
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