Grandin Village church gets a trim, alas…..w/ minor update
The trees outside Virginia Height Baptist Church got an unfortunate trim over the weekend.
What the heck happened to the beautiful blossoming Bradford pear trees outside Virginia Heights Baptist Church over the weekend? I’m not the only one who wants to know. It looks like Paul Bunyan took a giant buzz saw to the pretty little church plaza on Grandin Road at Memorial Avenue, next to the Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op.
Blossoming Bradfords are beautiful but the wood in the trees is absolute junk. A little bit of rain and wind and their branches will split and fall faster than the Hokies did against Baylor on Saturday.
That’s one of the reasons why the city chopped down the Bradfords in Grandin Village and replaced them with sturdier European hornbeams and Natchez crepe myrtles when it widened the sidewalks and narrowed the roadway back in 2004.
Update: Tuesday afternoon, Harris sent me an email but had no comment.
March 23, 2009 - 12:32 PM
Dan – one thought. Let’s not assume a negative before learning the facts. Perhaps the trees have been attended to for good reasons that will benefit us all.
Jim, it’s a fact that the trees were topped, and that it substantially alters the streetscape. It’s my opinion that the result is ugly. At some point someone from the church may answer the question as to why it was done; as of Monday night it nobody had.
This topping practice is a plague in Roanoke. Our city would look so much better if everyone knew that topping is not a long term fix for tree related problems.
Once Bradford Pears mature there are few options for pruning. Weak branch unions are already established. Thinning, cabling and bolting can be short term options but eventually they will fall apart despite the efforts. Topping, as seen in the pictures, will encourage weak branch sprout growth which will also fail over time.
If these pears are left to re-sprout they will have a limited lifespan, because of the structural problems. So in 5-10 years they will need to be replaced. I suggest cutting them down now and replanting soon so that there will be beautiful and healthy trees in front of the church in 10 years.
Adam Braaten – ISA Certified Arborist – Bartlett Tree Experts
Maybe the devil made them do it.