Applied Tree Statics - Andreas Detter

Pulling tests are used to assess the strength of the anchorage as well as the load-bearing capacity of the trunk. Combined with a systematic analysis of wind forces acting on the crown, the pulling test method allows an assessment of the stability and fracture safety of the trees in storm events. The procedure has already been applied to thousands of trees worldwide. The results of numerous pulling tests may be used to improve the quality of visual inspection through a better understanding of the biomechanical background and the actual performance and strength of trees. In the presentation accompanying this quiz, Andreas Detter illustrates what arborists who do not apply the pulling tests method themselves may learn for their own practice from the large number of tests carried out by consultants and researchers in the past decades.