Pruning a birch tree with co-dominant stems

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Larkonian

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I have a birch tree near my house that appears to have a co-dominant stem and I was recommended to remove it to prevent it from breaking off during a storm and hitting my garage. Originally we were just going to get it trimmed back to not overhang the house. I'm worried though that removing that large of a percentage of the tree could kill off the rest of it. Has anyone had any experience with pruning a co-dominant stem of this size?
 

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Not with birch but silver maple they are prone to this co dominant condition... but yes with a good blow one half or the other could peel off and fall on something. I wouldn't worry about "overhanging the house" branches but whichever side of the co-dom stem is towards the house- all the included bark in a crotch like that makes it weak, which is where the tree will fail eventually. It is possible it is two trees sharing a root system. If you get one cut off, it wont immediately kill the other half, but there will be a large wound/scar that down the road will be a hollow/ rotten spot on that side as the existing half tries to grow around it.

If you just get the one half pruned, a severe heading/ crown reduction to reduce wind load would probably be the way to go.
 
Thanks for the response! That information is really helpful. I didn't realize there was an issue with this tree until last week. I have an ash tree that has to come down in the front because of emerald ash borers so I'm trying to get both jobs done at once and trying to make the best decision about how to proceed with this tree.
 
I have a heritage river birch with two trunks. About 5 years ago an arborist connected the two trunks with a cable about 25’ off the ground, so the two trunks essentially support each other. You might consider that.
 
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