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TIL a client in Bellingham had been topping his own maple for three years before calling us.
Last week we got a call for a hazard assessment, and the tree was a mess of water sprouts and decay pockets. The owner said he'd been 'keeping it tidy' every spring with a pole saw from the hardware store. How common is it for homeowners to cause more problems trying to save a few hundred bucks?
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ray8167mo ago
Ugh, that's the story of my life around here.
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nancyhernandez6mo ago
Oh man, that's so true. I watched my neighbor butcher a beautiful old apple tree for years. He'd just whack off any branch that got near his roof line, leaving these awful stubs. Now the whole thing is just a thicket of these skinny, weak shoots and it looks terrible. He honestly thought he was doing it a favor. It's sad because that tree is probably a lost cause now.
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leor837mo ago
Short hot take: Classic DIY disaster.
Longer response: It's way too common. People see a branch and just hack at it without knowing where to cut. Those water sprouts are a direct result of bad pruning, and a pole saw from a box store just makes it worse every year. They end up with a weak, ugly tree that's actually more dangerous. Sometimes paying a pro from the start saves you a huge headache and a bigger bill later.
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