Keep seeing people top their oaks like it's 1990

I was at a job last week in Austin where the homeowner insisted on topping their live oak because 'that's what my dad always did.' I mean, maybe I'm off here but doesn't everyone know by now that topping leads to weak regrowth and rot? Has anyone else had to talk a client out of this and actually get through to them?

3 comments

3 Comments

green.iris3mo ago

Wait, do people actually still think tar seals help cuts?

phoenix_grant3mo ago

Come on, live oaks are tough as nails. A good hard topping shocks the tree into producing way more growth than it would naturally. All that dense new foliage blocks the Texas sun way better than some scraggly natural canopy. The "rot" argument is overblown if you seal the cuts right with some tar or pruning paint. Plus a topped oak is way less likely to split in a hurricane since the heavy branch ends are gone. Your client's dad probably had a healthy tree that lasted decades, so why mess with what works?

wren2303mo ago

honestly i just read a thing from the texas a&m extension service that said tar traps moisture against the wood and actually helps rot get started. i used to think sealing cuts was smart too but apparently trees seal themselves if you just cut right. and that "dense new foliage" thing, yeah it looks thick for a year or two but those water sprouts are weakly attached and snap off in wind way easier than natural branches. i get that your client's dad's tree lasted, but survivorship bias is a real thing, lots of topped oaks die slow deaths from decay and everyone just forgets about them. plus that hurricane argument doesnt hold up either, heavy branch ends are less weight but the tree puts all its energy into weak regrowth that rips apart worse.