Snedding is the process of stripping the side shoots and buds from the length of a branch or shoot, usually of a tree or woody shrub. This process is most commonly performed during

hedge laying Hedgelaying (or hedge laying) is the process of partially cutting through and then bending the stems of a line of Shrub, shrubs or small trees, near ground level, without breaking them, so as to encourage them to produce new growth from the bas ...

and prior to the

felling Felling is the process of cutting down trees,"Feller" def. 2. and "Felling", def. 1. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' 2nd ed. via CD-ROM (v. 4.0) © Oxford University Press. 2009. an element of the task of logging. The person cutting the trees is ...

of trees on plantations ready for cropping. The verb 'sned', analogous to today's

limbing Limbing or delimbing is the process of removing branches from a standing or fallen tree trunk. In logging, limbing follows felling. Limbing plays a role in fire prevention by removing branches from live trees that can otherwise serve as part o ...

, has also been used by woodcutters in Scotland to refer to the process of removing branches from felled trees. Whether using an

axe An axe (; sometimes spelled ax in American English; American and British English spelling differences#Miscellaneous spelling differences, see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for thousands of years to shape, split, a ...

, a

chainsaw A chainsaw (or chain saw) is a portable handheld power saw, power saw that cuts with a set of teeth attached to a rotating chain driven along a guide bar. Modern chainsaws are typically gasoline or electric and are used in activities such as t ...

or a

billhook A billhook or bill hook is a versatile cutting tool used widely in agriculture and forestry for cutting woody material such as shrubs, small trees and branches. It is distinct from the sickle. It was commonly used in Europe with an important var ...

, the relative difficulty of snedding was a key measure of the difficulty of the job as a whole. The word comes from the Scandinavian ''snäddare'', meaning a smooth log via the Old English ''snǣdan''. Snedding can also describe a form of

pruning Pruning is the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. It is practiced in horticulture (especially fruit tree pruning), arboriculture, and silviculture. The practice entails the targeted removal of di ...

when only some shoots will be removed, or when removing the leafy top from root crops (particularly turnips).

References

Notes

External links

Irish Forestry Safety Guide: Chainsaw Snedding
Horticulture {{Forestry-stub