girdling

Suppose we liken the British Empire to a chain girdling the world, composed of alternate links of blue and brown -- sea and land -- we then have a symbol of the Empire.

A Weak Link in the Imperial Chain 1909

But methods such as girdling, slash and burn, and the rest, came almost directly from Indian technology.

Agricultural Implements and Machines in the Collection of the National Museum of History and Technology Smithsonian Studies in History and Technology, No. 17 John T. Schlebecker

There are no recent marks of the axe -- not even the "girdling" of a tree -- nothing to show that another rood is required.

The Wild Huntress Love in the Wilderness Mayne Reid 1850

"girdling," the tree quickly dies, as it can derive no further nourishment from the soil.

Seasoning of Wood

Or we get some world-girdling police state that stagnates and collapses (or somehow winds up unleashing nuclear war on itself).

Matthew Yglesias » Almost All Decline is Relative 2010

He offered to draw her toward him again, but it was no more than a tentative muscular movement of the girdling arm, for he feared that he might be greedy.

Chapter 21 2010

Keeping Trees Trim girdling One technique being tested in the Hudson Valley is "girdling" healthy trees, removing an 18-inch-long patch of bark around the trunk, to stress them and make them more attractive to the beetle.

Week in Words Erin McKean 2011

The girdling arm lifted higher and drew her toward him, drew her slowly and caressingly.

Chapter 21 2010

Once an ash is infested with EAB eggs, it dies within three to five years, several experts said, and according to a USDA report, as of 2009 federal and state agencies have spent more than $209 million trying to manage the beetle's populations in the U.S., usually by cutting down or girdling ash trees.

The Bugs Rescuing the Baseball Bats Mike Sielski 2011

So perhaps it behooves us mainly to avoid the giant wars and the world-girdling police state by not doing those things that have that result, like enthusiatically endorsing relative decline and actively working for it, since that tends to result in severe political instability.

Matthew Yglesias » Almost All Decline is Relative 2010