cora_martinez•20d agoProlific Poster

Just realized how much damage a bad pruning cut can do after 5 years

I was at a job site in Portland last Wednesday removing a dead branch from a red oak and noticed this huge section of decay running right down the trunk. Turned out someone made a flush cut on a 4 inch limb about 5 years ago, and that stub collar never sealed. The rot traveled almost 2 feet down into the main stem. It really hit me that a 30 second mistake can ruin a tree for decades. How do you guys handle educating homeowners who think a clean flush cut looks better?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_nathan20d ago

That flush cut thing is everywhere, not just trees. I see the same mindset with people pressure washing their driveways too close to the foundation or grinding out stumps way below grade. Quick fix now, huge bill later. With trees, I just tell them the branch collar is like a tree's immune system, cutting it off is like ripping a scab off a wound every time it tries to heal. If they still push back, I pull out my phone and show them photos of the last five flush cut disasters I've seen. Visual proof shuts them up faster than any lecture.

emma_hart20d ago

Photos of five failed flush cuts. That's the tree version of a mugshot lineup. Nothing convinces like a few dead trees.