I nearly break my neck tripping over this, and the garden hose always hangs up on it. Can I cut this flush to the ground? Any tips?
by Wooden-Structure9465
I nearly break my neck tripping over this, and the garden hose always hangs up on it. Can I cut this flush to the ground? Any tips?
by Wooden-Structure9465
7 Comments
I generally recommend avoiding all damage to exposed roots and the “knees” that form under bald cypress. But in this specific case, I don’t think you’ll hurt anything by cutting that smoothly down to the ground.
I agree with the above commenter. Generally, cutting tree roots is bad (with a few exceptions like removing girdling roots) but in this case I’m relatively confident you will be good to go.
Mulch the area and put a sufficiently sized rock next to it so you don’t miss it.
I wouldn’t cut it. Best to avoid introducing avenues for root decay where you can.
For a couple bucks at Lowe’s you can get a little stake with a wheel on it that guides your hose around corners. Stick one of them there, and put something else above the knee like a fairy house so you don’t trip. Much better long term solution
Tree will fall down instantly.
Certified arborist here.
That is not a “knee”. Bald cypresses put up knees (called pneumatophores) to get oxygen to their roots in water-logged soil. This is not a bald cypress, nor is it in water-logged soil.
That is an oak tree and the root was a low surface root originally but was likely hit by a mower or even intentionally cut low in the past. The knobs on it are the tree’s effort to compartmentalize the wound. In fact, you can see where it successfully compartmentalize the majority of the wound: notice how there are lines arrayed around the center all pointing towards a sort of inch-long scar. That’s bark grown from the outside edge, over and in, to cover the old wound. The knobs are places where this process was interrupted, so the reaction wood has to make weird shapes to enclose a different wound now.
If you were to cut it low to the ground, it would have to start that work all over, and would potentially grow up large to be a “tripping hazard” again. That wound would also create a pathway for infection at the roots, which is always best to avoid.
I recommend putting mulch around the root, or even around the entire tree, leaving a little space between the mulch and the root/tree itself. Maybe put a large rock or small statue or bird feeder near the root in question.
Good luck!
“Well, how would you like to have someone come along and pick something off of you? “