06/28/2026
🌳 North Texas Summer Tree Care Alert 🌳
Don't Trim Your Oaks and Elms!
If you are planning your summer yard work, please put down the chainsaw! Pruning oak and elm trees during the warmer months is a major risk for our local urban canopy.
Why? It all comes down to bugs and fatal diseases:
🦠 Oak Wilt: Fresh pruning wounds release sap that acts like a dinner bell for sap-feeding beetles. If they carry the oak wilt fungus from an infected tree to your healthy oak, the disease can spread rapidly through the tree or its interconnected root system, proving fatal in just a few months.
🦠 Dutch Elm Disease (DED): Similarly, pruning elms during their active season exposes fresh cuts that attract elm bark beetles, which spread this equally aggressive, deadly fungus.
The Golden Rule: Only prune during the dormant, cold-weather months when these beetles are inactive. The only recommended pruning during the hotter months is tip end work to create clearance of structures, walkways, and driveway/streets...and that's only if absolutely necessary.
Protect our beautiful Texas trees and share this post to spread the word!
🌳💚
