A guy in Boise told me to stop cutting flush to the trunk on big oaks

I was helping a crew on a 100-year-old white oak removal in Boise, and the foreman, Mark, saw me making my final cut right against the trunk. He pulled me aside and said, 'That collar isn't just a bump, it's the tree's ER for that branch.' He explained how cutting into that swollen area destroys the tree's natural defense zone and can lead to serious decay inside. I always thought a clean, flush cut looked more professional, but now I leave that half-inch collar on every single time. How do you all handle collar identification on species where it's not super obvious?

3 comments

3 Comments

kaip112mo ago

So how do you actually spot that line on something like a maple, where the collar is basically flat? I've had to go by bark texture alone sometimes.

casey8433d ago

Read an article from a forestry extension program that said to look for the branch bark ridge on top and the collar on bottom, then make your cut angled to match. On maples where the collar is flat, you basically just cut at the angle of the ridge and hope for the best. It's not perfect but it beats going by bark texture and guessing.

lee6272mo ago

Wait, a half-inch collar? That sounds way too big for most cuts. On a big oak, the branch protection zone is maybe a quarter inch, if that. Leaving too much stub is almost as bad as cutting flush because it won't seal right. You gotta find that slight swelling where the branch meets the trunk and cut just outside it.