Trees

Two points about The Sun's coverage of tree cutting by Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. ("A bid to trim power outages," Dec. 23). First, I told the management of BGE at a meeting held with them by the Baltimore City Forestry Board in 1987 that their aggressive tree pruning was not working and to return to the old method. I also suggested that they contribute to city street tree planting instead of planting under power lines, as was their practice at the time. They refused on both counts.

Childs Walker 's recent article about the power outages ("Down come the trees, and off goes the power," Aug. 29), may be more appropriately titled, "Here come the environmentalists, up go the trees. " Where I live in Baltimore County, when you build you have the tree environmentalists dictating what trees can be removed. The same bureaucrat then dictates what trees you must replace. The county always forces you to add trees. Yet when it comes to utility disruptions, trees are the real culprit.

As someone who endured a five-day power outage after Hurricane Irene, I am bemused by Bill Alcarese's letter blaming trees for the downed power lines ("As Irene demonstrated, trees have their disadvantages," Sept. 1). The problem is not with the trees but with the power lines, which should be buried underground. Every year, this country loses hundreds of millions of dollars in lost productivity due to downed power lines that shut down businesses and keep people from getting to work.

Thanks to Timothy Wheeler for his recent article about Baltimore's tree loss, some reasons for it and the importance of canopy within cities ("Study finds Baltimore, other cities losing trees," Feb. 28). I appreciate city forester Erik Dihle's description of Baltimore's plan for doubling the city's tree canopy by 2037. What was not mentioned as a threat to the longevity of older trees is English ivy. Like a boa constrictor, it can squeeze the life out of a tree. Northern Baltimore, where I live, is rampant with it. My hope is that home owners will recognize this threat and cut the life out of the ivy near the base of their trees before the life in their trees is cut short.

A Howard County parks program that on Monday offered 2,010 young trees free to Howard County residents had such a heavy response that all the trees were spoken for by noon Wednesday. Residents could reserve up to two of five different varieties of native trees, and can pick them up May 1 from one of five locations around the county. Money for the trees, which are up to 5 feet tall, comes from interest from a Forest Conservation Fund that builders pay into if they fail to meet their reforestation requirements.

I read with great interest the commentary by Tom Horton regarding Maryland's draft forest policy ("To save the bay, save the trees," Jan. 5). As an active master gardener and avid outdoor person, I am tuned in to the environment. It is well known our current Baltimore County administration has comfortable ties to the development corporations. Since May 2011, I have been dealing with the effects of sprawling development on the environment in Randallstown and a lack of interest from county government.

After the recent hurricanes, I'm worried about a tree by my house. Should I get it topped so it's shorter and less prone to fall over? Tree topping (which is like a buzz cut) is never recommended, for several reasons. Trees are programmed through their DNA to grow to a particular height. If chopped back, they will grow tall again. Add to this that pruning stimulates growth. Consequently, whacking the top off a tree produces lots of rapidly growing suckers and unfortunately this new growth is weakly attached to the tree.

A dispute over whose property three trees were on prompted one neighbor to fatally shoot another neighbor with a rifle in Western Maryland on Wednesday, and police said this morning they have a suspect in custody. Maryland State Police said the victim, Dennis E. Liller, 43, and the suspect, Alexander E. Malaska, 69, live next door to each other on Park Horse Trail in Allegany County. The shooting occurred Wednesday about 8 p.m. Malaska was charged with manslaughter and is being held in the Allegany County Detention Center on $300,000 bail.

I camp in tents a lot and love the environment more than most. However, we should not be trimming trees under power lines. We should be cutting them down . Trimming only postpones the damage. Trees don't belong under power lines. It really irritates me when a tree under power lines is finally cut down, and then someone plants another one that will pose a similar problem in the future. BGE has overhead right-of-way for power lines, but it does not own the land in most locations.

More trees have been cut down in the Inner Harbor - for bikers and hikers this time, not race car fans. A contractor removed 13 trees last week on Light Street by the  Harborplace pavilion, according to Adrienne Barnes, spokeswoman for the city's Department of Transportation.  They had to go, Barnes said, to make way for the final leg of the Jones Falls trail, which tracks the stream of the same name from Robert E. Lee Park through the...