A client told me to stop pruning my way and it changed how I approach oaks

Last spring I had a guy stop me mid cut on a big red oak in Austin. He said I was taking too many live branches off the lower crown and that I was stressing the tree out. I thought I was doing the right thing for clearance, but he explained how oaks store energy in those lower limbs. Now I leave at least 60 percent of the lower canopy intact unless there's a real reason to remove it. Has anyone else had a customer call them out on something that actually made them better?

2 comments

2 Comments

paigep2011d ago

Nah, oaks actually store MOST of their energy in the ROOTS, not the lower limbs.

lopez.karen11d ago

Wait, so the roots are the main storage for oaks? That actually makes a ton of sense given how they bounce back from stress. Had a client once tell me I was thinning too close to the trunk and it totally changed how I see branch collars too.