The act of putting a girdle or belt around something, or the process of removing a band of bark from around a tree trunk.
Present participle of girdle, from Old English gyrdel. The term became specialized in forestry to describe bark removal, a practice used by beetles and loggers.
Girdling is actually used intentionally in forestry management—removing a ring of bark kills the tree above that point by cutting off nutrient flow, a technique that's thousands of years old.
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