Old timer told me to stop pruning oaks in summer and I didn't listen

Guy who's been climbing since the 70s warned me last June not to touch a client's red oak because of oak wilt. I thought he was being dramatic so I trimmed it anyway because the homeowner was pushy. By August that tree had wilt spots on half the canopy and I had to eat the cost of removal. Has anyone else had a stubborn lesson like that where you knew better but did it anyway?

3 comments

3 Comments

william_henderson26d ago

Why didn't the old timer just explain the science instead of being cryptic? Sometimes you gotta see it for yourself to really get it.

parkera2222d ago

Wait, @william_henderson, you think telling someone step by step science actually sticks? I've seen it go the other way so many times. Like when a buddy tried to explain how a carburetor works on paper, and then the guy watching just nodded and screwed up the whole thing. That old timer's cryptic talk forces you to connect the dots yourself. The lesson sticks way harder when you earn it through your own mistakes. Explaining everything upfront would be like giving someone the answers to a test they never even studied for.

miam7526d ago

Old timer told me" - I learned that lesson with electrical, just trust the guy who's been doing it since Nixon.