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Girdling, also called ring barking or ring-barking is the complete removal of a strip of bark (consisting of cork cambium, phloem, cambium and sometimes going into the xylem) from around the entire circumference of either a branch or trunk of a woody plant. Girdling results in the death of the area above the girdle over time. A branch completely girdled will fail and when the main trunk of a tree is girdled, the entire tree will die, if it cannot regrow from above to bridge the wound. Among the causes of girdling are human practices, including forestry, horticulture, and vandalism. Foresters use the practice of girdling to thin forests. Girdling can also be caused by herbivorous mammals feeding on plant bark and by birds and insects, both of which can effectively girdle a tree by boring rows of adjacent holes. Orchardists use girdling as a cultural technique to yield larger fruit or set fruit, often called cincturing used in agriculture. Only the layer just under the bark is removed for this technique. == Forestry and horticulture == Like all vascular plants, trees use two vascular tissues for transportation of water and nutrients: the xylem (also known as the wood), and the phloem (the innermost layer of the bark). Girdling results in the removal of the phloem, and death occurs from the inability of the leaves to transport sugars (primarily sucrose) to the roots. In this process, the xylem is left untouched, and the tree can usually still temporarily transport water and minerals from the roots to the leaves. Trees normally sprout shoots below the wound; if not, the roots die. Death occurs when the roots can no longer produce ATP and transport nutrients upwards through the xylem. (The formation of new shoots below the wound can be prevented by painting the wound with herbicide.〔Randall B. Heiligmann, ("Controlling Undesirable Trees, Shrubs, and Vines in Your Woodland," ) Ohio State University; Columbus, Ohio, USA.〕) Ring barking techniques have been developed to disrupt or impede sugar transport in phloem, stimulating early flower production and increasing fruiting, and for controlling plant size, reducing the need for pruning.〔Coombs, Blackburn-Maze,Cracknell, Bentley (1992) The Complete Book Of Pruning p.23 ISBN 0-7063-7235-2〕 Girdling is a slow process compared to felling and is often used only when necessary, such as in the removal of an individual tree from an ecologically protected area without damaging surrounding growth. Accidental girdling is also possible and some activities must be performed with care. Saplings which are tied to a supporting stake may be girdled as they grow, due to friction caused by contact with the tie. If ropes are tied frequently to a tree (e.g. to tether an animal or moor a boat), the friction of the rope can also lead to the removal of bark. The practice of girdling has been known in Europe for some time. Another example is the girdling of selective Douglas-fir trees in some Northern California Oak Woodlands, such as Annadel State Park, in order to prevent that fir from massive invasion of the mixed oak woodland. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「girdling」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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