Old timer told me to quit cutting high leads so aggressively

I used to always flush cut every high lead down to the trunk, figured it was cleaner. Then a retired arborist I met at a job site in St. Louis said I was leaving too much damage and should leave a 6 inch stub. Started doing that last year and the trees I pruned are bouncing back way faster, less dieback around the cuts. Anyone else switch up their cut placement based on older guys' advice?

2 comments

2 Comments

emerychen1mo ago

Well I'll be darned, that goes against what I learned too. I remember reading a study from the University of Florida a few years back that showed stub cuts actually help the tree seal over faster because you leave those branch collar tissues intact. The flush cuts cut right into the trunk wood and open up a big wound that rots out easier. I tried it on a row of mature oaks I maintain and the difference was night and day. Those stubs calloused over in one season while my old flush cuts still looked like open wounds two years later.

iris_rivera441mo ago

I had a similar experience with an old landscaper who told me to stop using string trimmers right up against the base of young trees. He said it was girdling them slowly, and sure enough I started leaving a few inches of grass around the trunk and the trees looked way healthier within a year. It's funny how the old hands just know stuff from watching what works over decades.