I finally stopped pruning oaks in spring after 11 years in the biz

Used to think I was helping by taking off dead limbs before summer storms, but my mentor in Austin showed me how oak wilt spreads through fresh cuts from April to June. Anybody else have to unlearn a bad habit that took way too long to catch?

2 comments

2 Comments

cora_martinez20d agoProlific Poster

The whole oak wilt thing is one of those lessons that stings when you finally get it. I was cutting deadwood in May for years before I realized I was basically leaving the door open for beetles to spread the fungus. Now I just tape up any wound over 2 inches with pruning sealer if I absolutely have to cut during the growing season, but I try to do all my oak work between November and February when the beetles are dormant. It feels wrong at first leaving dead branches on through a storm season but honestly the tree handles it better than a fresh cut during the active spread window. I keep a can of pruning paint in my truck just in case I accidentally snag a branch with a bush hog or something.

dylan26520d ago

Yeah I paint all my fresh cuts on oaks now too.

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