That old timer at the job site said I was wasting time cleaning every saw cut

I was on a job clearing out some old oaks near a house in Dayton last week. This guy in his 70s walks over, watches me clean every single cut with a brush before moving on. He just shook his head and said I was slowing myself down for no reason. Said back in his day they just made the cut and moved on, trees healed fine on their own. Got me thinking about all the little habits we pick up from training videos and online forums. Has anyone else had an older arborist tell you something that made you question your whole approach?

3 comments

3 Comments

val97418d ago

Keith, but what if the old timer's trees actually did just fine?

ben_fisher18d ago

Woah, hold up, he didn't clean the cuts at all? That just sounds like asking for rot and disease to take hold, especially on an oak. I can't imagine skipping that step on a job like that.

keith16418d ago

Yeah totally agree with you @ben_fisher, "asking for rot and disease" is exactly right. I had a buddy who did the same thing on a mature maple back in 2019, skipped cleaning the cuts and within two years that tree had a nasty fungal infection spreading from the pruning wounds. Oak trees are especially bad about that since their bark is so thick and the cuts stay wet for longer. Your mileage may vary but I've never had a problem just taking the extra few minutes with a clean rag and some rubbing alcohol between cuts.