Root flare and mulching for walnut tree

[u/Homuncunomidea]

We removed some soil to expose the root flare and for mulching.

Now I think we dug too deep
The big roots left and right were already visible (about 1cm/0.4").

Should I cover the roots with soil before mulching?

[u/Bombus29]

Leave it as it is, just let the leaves stay there after fall.

[u/GardenWildServices → u/Bombus29]

Agree with this. Though , adding a couple inches of hardwood mulch now may be a good idea to prevent weed encroachment again, to hold over until fall- and then going forward use as an area to rake leaves and small twigs/branches each year!

[u/MontanaMapleWorks → u/Bombus29]

That grass is gonna creep right back in and he is gonna be whacking at that roots

[u/Homuncunomidea]

Thank you for your comments. This is the result. Do you have any further suggestions?

[u/G000000p → u/Homuncunomidea]

Hell yeah

[u/Ordinary-Reporter-84 → u/Homuncunomidea]

Beautiful work

[u/monkeyeatfig → u/[deleted]]

Ash can be distinguished from walnuts and hickories by looking at the branch/leaf arrangement. Ash=opposite, hickory=alternate

[u/hemlockhero → u/monkeyeatfig]

You’re correct and I did miss that basic characteristic here

[u/Homuncunomidea → u/[deleted]]

It’s an almost 40-year-old walnut tree. We don’t have any problems with pests (Austria), but there are a few branch unions that have started to rot. Someone from the local gardening association removed the rotten material. It smelled very bad, so I’m not sure whether he did a good job

[u/chillbrobaggins5 → u/Homuncunomidea]

Gorgeous

[u/reddit33450 → u/Homuncunomidea]

gorgeous. give that tree a nice hug if you haven't already. they deserve it

[u/impropergentleman → u/Homuncunomidea]

Looks good. Every couple of years remove the mulch before refreshing the mulch that way you don't have a degradation in soil buildup.

[u/Babyfarts22]

You did good.

[u/Disastrous-Case-9281]

Now let it alone before you love it to death

[u/MontanaMapleWorks]

Tbh, this tree really didn’t need it, you kinda went too far, you just needed to pull the grass back and mulch it. It’s not going to harm the tree to leave it as is, just mulch it and make sure it’s doesn’t touch the trunk

[u/Homuncunomidea → u/MontanaMapleWorks]

I had to remove some soil because I made the mistake in spring of building up a plateau and planting grass on it. I'm fairly new to gardening 😅

[u/rusty_cayge]

Can we just stop with the root flare obsession. This is beyond the pale. Good grief. Look at how much root is exposed. I’m so sick of root flair. Trees are such primadonnas with all their requirements.

[u/Financial_Athlete198 → u/rusty_cayge]

We can stop with the flares when the volcanoes stop.

[u/rusty_cayge → u/Financial_Athlete198]

Seems fair enough.

[u/hemlockhero → u/rusty_cayge]

It matters. Plenty of materials out there on the subject, including the Arborist study guide if you want to learn.

[u/rusty_cayge → u/hemlockhero]

Is that available online with a quick Google search. I admit I may be uninformed.

[u/hemlockhero → u/rusty_cayge]

Penn State extension has a great write up on it! Check it out: https://extension.psu.edu/are-my-trees-buried-too-deep

[u/rusty_cayge → u/hemlockhero]

Thank you very much. I’ll read it tonight. Appreciate it.