Linden trunk-cracked

cracked-trunk, split-trunk...
i wanted to try what Sebastijan Sandev did on his prunus mahaleb to correct inverse taper. Now i've mentioned my source, and inspiration, here is what i made of it, while repotting my Linden with inverse taper, last sunday.

Could have been better, i should have used the lowest wedge in another manner (drive it in from below/underneath instead of from the front).
Not yet done, more cracking and splitting next year to widen it some more since the lowest 4 to 5 inches need to widen a bit more.

Hope it survives. Some nightfrost coming, so a bit of protection now untill leaves open up.

cheers.

Foto 1: closeup, first wedge just above the substrate, completely driven in.

yves71277 wrote:... ... Hope it survives.... ...

Me too! I wish it will survive!
It's always fascinating to experiment. However, I think that there are so many beautiful trees in nature having inverse taper or lacking taper.... just my thoughts written on the keyboard

Wow, that looks...interesting.

Twisted Trees wrote:Wow, that looks...interesting.

yes , and hidious too, for now

Hi, nice job. But I agree: It needs further widening. Just a question.. Why not take it all the way now?

Also, have you considered taking the top off a little on one side to add taper there too?

leatherback wrote:Hi, nice job. But I agree: It needs further widening. Just a question.. Why not take it all the way now?

Also, have you considered taking the top off a little on one side to add taper there too?

Hi Jelle,
1. I deliberately didnt go any further, only because I feel i've damaged the goods allready quite a bit, since i have it (august 2012). Its a risk, with a tree that suffered Cercospora. I allready pruned back hard, did a drastic rootpruning, carved the trunk, now split it. Better to hold my horses for now. But, more to come.

2. I didnt want to create the 'usual' taper. It was about 20cm higher with 'better' taper, but i'm aiming at the hollow to create the next best thing, and rather something unusual rather that usual. I was looking a bit for the drama of the many old (sacred) Linden here in Flanders (some centuries old, with cracked or hollow trunk, or heavy trunk but been pollarded etcetera). In my mind was such a tree, hit by lightning and cracked open.

OK, clear. I know these linden trees; We have a 200+ years old linden tree around the corner of our place, and it is held together by 2 inch steel wires