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Sealing tree wounds

KeenOnGreenKeenOnGreen Posts: 1,625
in Plants
Our Walnut tree has become too large (a hasty and ill conceived purchase). We need to cut the main leader, and know it will bleed a lot (as even very small branches bleed for months during the Winter).

Is there anything we can do to reduce this, and to prevent infection, or is it just a question of leaving it open to the elements, and hoping for the best?

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 27,581
    Ours doesn't bleed but then we cut back unwanted stems soon after leaf fall and long before sap starts rising and we're just cutting branches hanging too low rather than a leader and it is 40 years old now.
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
  • LiriodendronLiriodendron Scariff, County Clare, IrelandPosts: 7,432
    I think @Obelixx is right, and if you can bear to leave it until late summer or autumn, @KeenOnGreen, and prune it then, it's much less likely to bleed.  I found out the hard way that this is true for silver birch trees, too.

    There's no way to seal a tree wound.  Wound paints are no longer recommended because they actually make matters worse, trapping fungal spores etc within the wound, and may impede the tree's natural abilty to callus over.
    "The one who plants trees, knowing that he will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life."  Rabindranath Tagore
  • KeenOnGreenKeenOnGreen Posts: 1,625
    Thanks @Obelixx and @Liriodendron I assumed the sap stopped rising during Winter, but I understand now that this is wrong. I'll wait until late Summer/early Autumn 2022 and then cut it.

    Whatever we do is going to be less than optimal, as cutting the main leader trunk of most trees makes them look awful and out of proportion. Let's just say I will do far more research before every buying a tree again!

     
  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 27,581
    How big is it?  Could you find a new home for it and get something more suitable?
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
  • KeenOnGreenKeenOnGreen Posts: 1,625
    It's about 4-5 metres tall, too big now to relocate, plus it has huge sentimental value. We cannot let it get any bigger, so we will definitely have to prune it and deal with the consequences.  

  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 27,581
    Good luck then.

    These links may help you - 
    https://thtreeservices.co.uk/walnut-tree-pruning-getting-timing-right/ 
    https://wikifarmer.com/walnut-tree-pruning-and-thinning/
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
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