By the Safer Trees Melbourne team · Updated 16/09/2026
People often use the words interchangeably, but to an arborist pruning and lopping are very different things with very different results.
What lopping is
Lopping, sometimes called topping or hat-racking, means cutting branches back to stubs at a set height, with no regard for where the tree would naturally shed a limb. It is fast and it looks tidy for a few months.
Why lopping causes problems
- Weak regrowth. The tree responds with dense clusters of fast shoots attached only to the outer layers of wood. As they get heavier they are prone to tearing out.
- Decay. Large stub cuts cannot seal over, so rot moves into the limb and eventually the trunk.
- Stress. Removing most of the leaf area starves the tree, and some species never recover.
- More cost. Lopped trees regrow quickly and need cutting again sooner, and often need removing within a few years.
What correct pruning looks like
Proper pruning follows the Australian Standard for pruning of amenity trees, AS 4373. Cuts are made just outside the branch collar or back to a lateral branch large enough to take over. That lets the tree seal the wound naturally and keeps its structure sound.
Instead of cutting everything back to one height, an arborist chooses which limbs to remove for a specific reason: thinning to reduce wind load, lifting for clearance, reducing to shorten the crown, or removing deadwood.
How to tell what you are being quoted for
Ask the contractor how they plan to cut the tree. If the answer is taking it back by a set number of metres all over, that is lopping. A good arborist will explain which limbs will come out and why, and should mention the Australian Standard.
Can a lopped tree be fixed?
Often, yes. Over a few visits the regrowth can be thinned and the strongest shoots selected to rebuild a better structure. It takes time, but it is usually cheaper than removal. See our tree pruning service for more.