Debate: Should you water a tree at the trunk or out at the drip line?

I always watered right at the base until a client in Denver showed me their trees doing way better after I switched to soaking the outer roots, but my old boss insists the trunk is where it counts so what do you all actually do?

3 comments

3 Comments

johnson.eva10d ago

Yeah your old boss has it backwards. The "watering at the trunk" thing is a common mix-up from thinking roots work like a drinking straw straight down. But most tree roots spread out way past the drip line, especially in clay soil. I've seen arborists dig up trees that were watered at the trunk for years and the roots were all shallow and tangled right there, missing the whole outer root zone. Soaking the drip line encourages roots to grow out and anchor the tree better, plus it gets water to the fine feeder roots that actually take up moisture. Your Denver client was right on the money.

milesbarnes10d agoTop Commenter

Also worth noting that trunk watering can actually rot the root flare over time.

craig.parker9d ago

My neighbor in Phoenix lost three citrus trees watering at the trunk every summer before someone told him to switch to the drip line, and now his surviving tree is actually producing fruit. That root rot thing is real - I've pulled back mulch on trees that looked fine above ground and found the bark all mushy right where the trunk meets the soil. It's honestly one of those things that feels wrong at first because you think you're wasting water further out, but the trees show you pretty quick who's right.