pruning cuts right or wrong

[Rod]

today whilst removeing deadwood from some old oaks a thaught occurred to me that pruning cuts as we were taught (nptc) do not allow the tree sufficient time to callus over before rot etc can set in

 

if an old piece of dead wood is on an oak it cuts it off gradualy its self and is almost sealed when the wood eventually fails

 

in contrast when we cut off a newly dead branch it has no head start in this process and the wound is exposed for longer

 

this made me think, if i was to leave a say six foot 'peg' and leave it to rot naturally until such time as it had to be removed or further reduced the tree would naturaly start its own wound healing process and be better for the trees well being, whilst also providing important habitat but in a more monitored way.

 

obviously this would only applies to some branches with the correct size position etc.

 

is this already in practice or am i wrong in my thinking

 

some thaughts please

[Mesterh]

I expect an informed reply from Monkey any time now

 

I am sure that it probably does help to leave a stub on but I have been criticizing others for doing that over the years so I cant start now

[skyhuck]

I think you have a point, but I don't think it would be very practical.

 

Also it would work well on some trees such as beech, as most branches would die if cut short but on most species the branch would pollard and continue to grow.

[Dean Lofthouse]

If you left a six foot peg you would have to give it a bart simpsons hair cut on the end

[Rod]

I think you have a point, but I don't think it would be very practical.

 

Also it would work well on some trees such as beech, as most branches would die if cut short but on most species the branch would pollard and continue to grow.

 

no, no, no, a dead branch im on about cutting i was dead wooding, cutting of dead bits

 

i expect monkeyd will know:001_smile:

[Tom D]

I've thought this myself in the past, however, when you think about it the natural process when a branch dies and falls is for wall four to cover over the wound, this can not happen while the branch is still attached. NTP pruning still leaves a cone of redundant wood within the stem, this reduntant wood is prone to attack by saprophytic fungi and can also be an entry point for fungi with heartwood exposed decay strategies. The quicker the wound heals over the less exposure to fungal attack there will be, a dead stub will prolong this exposure. Some species will lay down chemical bariers around the redundant wood, but only where it is in contact with active sapwood, if the cone extends into the heartwood there is no further action the tree can take except to build wall four as quickly a possible.

As for pruning live branches, obviously it would be better for the tree to not cut it at all, but NTP techniques are the least worse way of doing this. In species with particularly soft wood such as poplars and horse chestnut and where large limbs are to be removed I have wondered if leaving a stub would be beneficial, I think this has been discussed on here before, I can't remember the outcome though.

[Rod]

that makes sence i think:confused1:definately will be species dependent i was looking at oaks as i said but in all species you have to think what the next person up it will find as a result of what has been done.

[skyhuck]

no, no, no, a dead branch im on about cutting i was dead wooding, cutting of dead bits

 

 

:confused1:Well then just leave a few inches on, if you want

[nz paul]

stubs look bad

[Rod]

just to clarify im on about branches that have died or which the tree no longer needs, that would, if left be part of the trees normal development and would fall off

 

it is only because we hav a reason to cut them off that we do

 

i am asking if the best thing for a newly dead branch is to let the tree have time to start its own healing/shedding process rather than cutting it off totaly straight away

 

ie reducing the weight to a safe amount so it dosnt fall off suddenly and cutting it off when it needs to be(once it has become un safe)