Pollarding Vs. Topping

Question

A house I’m buying has a heavily-shaded back yard. I want to pollard at least one of the trees to allow sun for a vegetable garden. I’m having a bit of trouble telling the difference between a safe pollarding and a topping. What are some guidelines, beyond what is offered in the pages here, that I can use?

Answer 1

The basic difference is that with pollarding, the trimming process is started with a young tree and the sprouts are cut back each year. With topping, the cuts are made to older trees, allowing an entry point for insects and disease.

Pollarding comes with a big pruning chore each winter, probably best done by a tree trimming professional. You would be better off to remove one or two trees. Topping and pollarding are both unsightly and are detrimental to the trees.

https://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/woody/rcs-pollarding1.shtml
https://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_h/H156/welcome.html
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/tree-topping-information.htm