Flush Cut: Decay from inappropriate pruning cut

This decay and developing hollow resulted from a pruning cut made too close to the trunk. The natural protection boundary was removed when the branches were removed allowing decay to begin the the trunk.

Woundwod that closes over a flush cut forms an oval. Decay rapidly follows in some trees.

A good pruning cut leaves the branch bark ridge intact. The ridge is the dark line you can see along side and over the top of the crotch. Many good pruning cuts are round in cross section as shown in the photo. Click here for guidelines for making good pruning cuts.

Decay from a flush cut (left samples) is much more extensive than decay from the good pruning cut (right sample). These branches were pruned from red maple just 7 months earlier.