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Vent: A client's oak went from healthy to a hazard in under 6 months because they ignored my advice about mulch volcanoes.
I told them to keep the mulch away from the trunk base, but they piled it 12 inches high, and now the bark is rotting and there's a major girdling root issue that's going to cost thousands to fix.
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angelab626mo ago
Show them the rot with a trowel.
4
smith.anna5mo ago
And @angelab62 is absolutely right, I've actually done this myself a couple times. I was showing my uncle the damage on his oak last summer, just gently poked around the base with a trowel, and the bark just flaked right off to reveal this dark, mushy mess underneath. It's such a simple way to prove a point without having to argue about it.
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the_wesley6mo ago
Ugh, YES! I saw the EXACT same thing at a neighbor's place. They had this beautiful maple and just kept piling on the mulch every spring like it was a contest. I pointed out the damp, soft bark last fall, but they didn't listen. Now the whole base looks soggy and dark, and you can see the roots starting to strangle it. It's so frustrating to watch.
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