Oak Wilt Article

Oak Wilt Prevention

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What To Do With All Those Oak Leaves

Don’t trim your live oak trees between mid-February and June when the beetles that carry oak wilt disease are most active.  Wait until the hot summer months to trim your oak trees.  The beetle that carries the oak wilt infection is not as active during the hottest and coldest months of the year.  Always remember to paint the oak tree cuts within 30 minutes with either a latex or pruning paint.  

What do you do with all those oak leaves that fall in March?  Don’t send them to the trash!  Consider these leaves as free mulch and as a source for your compost bin.  If you don’t have too many leaves on your lawn, just mow them next time you cut your  grass.  The leaves will quickly decompose to organic material to feed your lawn. You can also run your  mower over the leaves and use the chopped leaves you pick up in your bag attachment as mulch.   Another alternative is to vacuum up the leaves with your blower and use as mulch around shrubs and flower beds. .  If you run short on time,  just rake the leaves directly into the beds.  It may take a little longer to decompose, but you will still get all the benefits of mulch.  I’ve even stored chopped leaves in garbage bags for later use in the season.  If the leaves are just slightly moist in the bag, you will eventually have a nicely decomposed compost/mulch.