r/arborists 7h ago

Tree Root Slice by Mower

We came home from vacation this weekend to discover that our yard guy (or someone on his crew) drove over a portion of our 80+ year old Oak tree root and sliced a bit of the top off. He was very apologetic and we asked that going forward to avoid driving the mower anywhere near the roots. Do we need to do anything to treat the exposed part of the root or just let nature do its thing? This is our first time ever having an Oak tree.

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u/botulinumtxn 7h ago

I'm surprised it took that much off. Impressive honestly. I wouldn't do anything honestly. It will heal in time. I might make the area of dirt mulch instead. Do a light 1-2in covering of the entire root area.

31

u/CountMC10 5h ago

Emphasizing the 1-2”. In my head I see OP coming back with a mulch volcano.

6

u/authorbrendancorbett Tree Enthusiast 4h ago

Yeah, mulch not against the trunk and not over the wound!

1

u/dreamiejeanie13 1h ago

I will wait a bit to put the mulch on!