2 hours ago by hprotagonist
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coppicing the technique is widely known.
not every coppiced tree can be convinced to grow straight, though.
an hour ago by oasisbob
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollarding is another similar technique, probably most similar to this one.
It's an interesting one to discuss with arborists. In North America, there isn't a long history of pollarded trees, so the technique is generally frowned upon since it's essentially "topping", a universally derided pruning method.
European arborists who maintain historical trees are more familiar with pollarding, and commonly are asked to explain why they believe their continuance of topping is defensible as a modern or scientific technique in the care of trees.
9 minutes ago by hinkley
Pollarding, according to Wikipedia, was first mentioned by a Roman poet 2100 years ago.
You could claim sort of convergent evolution, but I find it hard to believe that a 1500 year old Roman cultivation technique was reinvented in Japan almost exactly at the apex of China's naval power. This smells of corporate espionage.
41 minutes ago by OJFord
It's closer to pollarding isn't it? But even that's more 'let's make the tree bushy at this height' than the 'let's have normal-looking trees above this point as a starting platform' that daisugi seems to be.
2 hours ago by Isamu
I came here to mention coppicing as well. In medieval Europe forests were highly managed or farmed, and this technique produced a steady source of straight poles that were used in various diameters.
an hour ago by ed25519FUUU
Once you see coppicing it's one of those things you'll notice everywhere that was cultivated for a long period of time. I'm surprised at how straight the shoots would grow, and farmers were pretty good at managing and multiplying timber using this method.
3 minutes ago by hinkley
I just responded to a sibling pointed out that Rome records pollarding for at least 2100 years, but pollard and coppice are also critical to First Nations crafts in the new world as well. I think the only reason it dates to 100 BC in Rome is due to the limitations of recorded history, not a lack of imagination.
I'd place reasonable odds that coppice/pollard are older than the written word. I'
an hour ago by Zababa
The twitter thread from which the images came is also worth a read: https://twitter.com/wrathofgnon/status/1250287741247426565
12 minutes ago by fireattack
The technique is definitely cool, but can it really be called "sustainable"?
an hour ago by learn_more
I always thought some of the vertical branches growing on this mossy Live Oak in Gainesville FL, were like small trees growing out of the moss on the larger, horizontal branches. They look atypical. https://www.google.com/maps/@29.6527082,-82.3339247,3a,45.5y...
an hour ago by BugsJustFindMe
> Done right, the technique can prevent deforestation and result in perfectly round and straight timber
It's annoying that this doesn't explain what the hell "done right" means. What does one have to "do right" to get perfectly round and straight timber out of it? Graft the right tree?
an hour ago by jeffbarr
There's more info in the Twitter thread (https://twitter.com/wrathofgnon/status/1250287741247426565). Patience and pruning every two years are key!
40 minutes ago by samatman
Also (this is easy to miss) the technique is performed only on clones of one mutant Sugi tree (Japanese "cedar", actually more closely related to redwoods but it's its own genus).
25 minutes ago by warent
It's fascinating!... But am I the only one who finds this actually aesthetically unpleasant?
an hour ago by nabla9
Handy template: <Japanese name for doing something>, ancient Japanese technique/art of <doing something>.
For example:
Aruku, ancient Japanese technique of moving around. Written as 歩く and literally meaning 'walk' is movement of feet Japanese have perfected over thousands of years.
32 minutes ago by vangelis
Nakadashi, the Japanese Art of Fulfilling Others.
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