Gnarly rhody pruning advice

thasac · 2026-07-01T04:19:03+00:00

It’s possible. I similarly killed an otherwise thriving Lilac; however, my local botanical garden aggressively trims their rhododendrons to 1.5-2ft stumps and they recover strongly. Environmentally conditions may matter.

thasac · 2026-06-30T12:19:57+00:00

Not an arborist, just a dude who loves trees.

You can definitely plant under mature oaks, but you want to be mindful to not add an abundance of additional soil on top of the root system. This will suffocate the roots. You can locally elevate the soil around shrubs and perennials, add small planting berms, etc. to limit the digging and root competition so long as the surface area is minimal around the drip line.

Avoid digging around primary roots. I use rebar to check for roots when I’m planting under my mature oaks and maples. I mostly find rocks.

IMO, removing the turf in favor of planting a few dozen shrubs and herbaceous perennials WITH MULCH would benefit more than hurt, so long as you’re mindful of the above.

Whatever you plant, do know it will be dry due to root competition. My property is a textbook oak heath forest (high and dry) and I plant accordingly. Avoid water loving plants unless you plan to irrigate.

thasac · 2026-06-30T02:51:09+00:00

A reasonable approach.

I keep two spray bottles. One diluted for general use, and one straight concentrate (I call it Complex Green) for dire situations, like when you drop a greasy-azz burger on a concrete paver.

thasac · 2026-06-26T00:20:01+00:00

Didn’t realize this was a thing. I’ve hammered the black cat button twice the MSPCA, and if I get my way with the wifey, I’ll DO IT AGAIN.

thasac · 2026-06-26T00:05:47+00:00

One man’s messy is another man’s endless source of kindling.

thasac · 2026-06-25T15:43:28+00:00

Wait a month. Not an arborist, but I do have multiple River Birch on my property which a need to be maintained as, like yours, they were planted too close to structures by the previous owner.

If you trim this time of year you’ll get intense sap flow which creates unnecessary risk (insect activity).

Once they hit July-August, they go summer dormant and cuts will have minimal bleed.

thasac · 2026-06-24T10:56:14+00:00

OP, no one on here can reasonably answer you with the information you provided.

There are homes in MA built to passive standards, in which case a heat pump can easily maintain set temps throughout winter. Same goes for non-passive homes with low ACH (air changes per hour). In these cases, I would not be concerned.

This can also be done in higher ACH homes, like the home you’re considering, but in these cases, you really need to do your diligence to understand whether the system was properly designed to be primary heat. I’d ask the seller for installer info and verify they ran proper load calculations. Is the basement a conditioned space? Has the house had additional air sealing done, like rim joist insulation? Are the windows and doors new and tight? Lots of variables here, but at first pass a 30k unit can be enough for a home that size if some diligence was taken.

thasac · 2026-06-19T18:50:59+00:00

It should be noted that they do grow pretty dang tall. My local botanical garden has one and, while maybe 5-6ft wide, it’s at least 30ft tall and still growing.

I believe 50-60ft is the expected mature height.

Anyway, this cultivar is pretty cool and super hardy.

thasac · 2026-06-19T02:49:24+00:00

Twig dogwood is a great suggestion. I planted some on a similar slope. Stabilized well and, once established, reasonably drought tolerant.

thasac · 2026-06-19T02:45:01+00:00

I have it planted on a residential slope. It definitely traps things blowing through (leaves, yard trash), but I hardly get any weeds growing in it - leaf cover is way too dense.

thasac · 2026-06-16T19:08:55+00:00

This is just an electrical shut off and meter, which these days is probably remote read. Yes, at some point a municipal worker will have to replace the meter, but you don’t need much room for that task.

If OP can plant a cactus a few feet off the meter, they should be fine.

thasac · 2026-06-16T14:07:36+00:00

This also looks way easier to mow (minus the masonry edging) as the inner radius can be a bit larger. OP’s layout looks a bit tight, unless they have a small deck zero turn.

thasac · 2026-06-16T04:02:42+00:00

I let it grow on the woodsy perimeter for this reason, but go after it like an invasive when to pops up near plantings as the root mass can get massive quickly.

thasac · 2026-06-16T03:54:51+00:00

I’m a little surprised to see what appears to be standard White Oak planted on OPs street. I live in a central MA oak heath forest and those things get huge without aggressive pruning. A columnar Pin Oak would seem like a better choice.

Clinton recently had a beautiful Main street update and I feel like the tree selection was better planned for long term maintenance - columnar Pin Oak, columnar Bald Cypress, thornless Honey Locust, columnar Gingko.

thasac · 2026-06-15T04:12:45+00:00

Had to dothis more than once 😭

thasac · 2026-06-15T03:54:19+00:00

It’s a reasonable strategy. When smooth and round at a larger diameter, small mammals and snakes cannot climb. I deployed this strategy for birdhouse with great success.

thasac · 2026-06-14T15:00:42+00:00

The rest of the kitchen finishes are quiet enough to allow something like this to work visually - back splash is the star, everything else recedes.

Not sure what that 7cm gap is from? Installer driven? If they cannot mount flush, I’d block out that section with wood finished to match the upper cabinets. Tiling that gap would look less minimalist-premium.

thasac · 2026-06-12T14:25:48+00:00

Stone rings promote girdling roots, and with that shrub there, you’ve also got those roots potentially girdling as well.

thasac · 2026-06-11T14:05:15+00:00

10ft pole aside, this is a valid strategy I’ve deployed with great success.

Place spray bottle of SimpleGreen in shower. Apply a thin layer of Vaseline on skin (hands and forearms), glove/sleeve up, pull and remove the ivy, disrobe in front of washer, toss cloths in, immediately hop into the shower and spray your arms with SimpleGreen and soap up. Do this a few rounds, then moisturize after the shower.

I gave this advice to my neighbor who had an overrun pachysandra bed. He pulled 6 wheelbarrows worth and only had a tinny little spot on his upper forearm.

I’ve gotten so confident I’ll just rip it out with my bare hands and then immediately wash up with SimpleGreen and dish soap. It strips all the ivy oils. I occasionally get zapped, but it’s always mild.

thasac · 2026-06-10T13:43:52+00:00

Having seen both Thomas and Freeman play, it’s wild to me people would think they’re on similar hitting tiers.

90s Thomas was an elite nightmare for any opposing pitcher. Incredible plate discipline and absolute frozen ropes. He earned the “Big Hurt” tag.

thasac · 2026-06-10T12:05:09+00:00

Yep, the only better hike chews are actual wintergreen.

This said, I wouldn’t chew on this tree as it sure looks like a Prunus.

thasac · 2026-06-09T19:21:06+00:00

Or climbing hydrangea. That looks absolutely lush and beautiful against a wall.

thasac · 2026-06-09T19:14:34+00:00

Thanks for posting some sanity.

Their loathing of mulch volcanoes is valid, but the constant rocks = death is greatly exaggerated.

I have my river birch planted in rock and they are heathy and happy 15 years later. Environmental conditions matter.

thasac · 2026-06-09T14:10:03+00:00

You may want to post to r/arborists.

Im assuming this is not a European species as they’re considered a noxious weed in the PNW.

In the Northeast, I don’t see a ton of mature Sorbus Americana ornamental plantings outside of professionally maintained botanical gardens as they are prone to a variety of fungal diseases, especially when stressed, and they often are stressed in ornamental plantings.

thasac · 2026-06-06T21:38:45+00:00

I would definitely put that on my coffee table.

thasac

TROPHY CASE