Cabling & Bracing

Cabling and bracing is sometimes recommended to help strengthen multi-trunk trees from the effects of wind sway, ice, and weighty limbs. There are no guarantees that a weak crotch point won’t split, but cabling and bracing can be helpful under some circumstances. This is something that should be evaluated on-site, and not blindly priced over the phone. Cabling is not a do-it-yourself project. Standards dictate the types of materials used, insertion techniques and heights, as well as periodic inspections.

Once the right height for one or two cables is determined, our professionals climb the tree and drill a hole through each main branch and insert a threaded, galvanized eyebolt that is held in place with a large washer and two nuts. The two eyes are connected using steel cable. The tree will eventually grow over and hide the rods, but it can’t be allowed to cover the eyebolts, which have to be inspected, and perhaps adjusted, every year or two as the trunks grow. An overgrown cable-eye connection may lose its ability to move with the tree and cause the cable to snap. Call on the experts at Dad's Tree Service for all of your tree care needs in Arlington, Alexandria VA and surrounding areas.