Wound Dressings to Slow Decay: Howard Feed-N-Wax - Prune Like a Pro

Abrorist Gary Knowlton explains the importance of treating wounds to help trees heal. Although Gary has often promoted his own Orange Oil Beeswax, he has found a new product that is both effective and affordable - Howard Feed-N-Wax. Gary describes the proper usage of this product to aid in wound closures.
To learn more about Prune Like a Pro and Gary Knowlton visit: PruneLikeaPro.com

[@Theaddman]

Not sure if it really matters but wanted to say thank you for putting this video out there if anyone is still monitoring this channel it’s awesome information.👏

[@seapoacher]

I saved my giant oak tree, which had been suffering from rot and insect damage. I used this product, and it works.

[@mv5203]

Miona Mackey was the president of my Mothers garden club back in the 1970's. I remember sitting in my tree house and watching her wipe something on a bunch of trees by dad had just pruned. She told me it was furniture polish, that the trees would heal better and to tell my mom to bring seventy-five cent for the upcoming Botanical garden trip. All those trees are still alive and thriving at my parents old house when I drive by. Mrs. Mackey was before her time.

[@moon_dog4]

No she wasn't

[@nadrojiskool]

Great advice, Gary! I would add a word of caution, though, to those reading the comments. Some have defaced the credibility of the video without providing any concrete information or sources. Please conduct your own due diligence, but I side with Gary.

[@moon_dog4]

65 yr old arborist here.Tree wound dressing recipes are recorded by early Greek history, thousands of years ago. While working for Bartlett tree experts starting in 1977 we we religiously painted every cut including pole saw cuts.(placing paint brush in hole with spring clip on pole saw head) i saw a salesman order a climber to go back up a big oak cuz he missed painting one. (Called a "shiner") that was. the standard, the paint pot being as important as the pruning saw. After a couple of years we were informed Bartlett (scientists) had completed a 10 year study on tree wounds and dressing and it was discovered that dressing was" merely astetic" having no discernible healing properties. Also discovered we were making cuts to "flush",another erroneous standard, thereby making an unnecessary larger wound. We were instructed to make the cut slightly smaller creating a "heal collar ". Everyone threw out their paint with the relief of never having to use them again. I kept mine an still have it in my truck. When a customer customer asks if I'm going to paint the cuts I hand it to them and say if you can unscrew the cap, ill paint them. Its siezed on tight after 45 years. Mankind has believed in many falsehoods for many years (earth is flat) I stil see tar based tree paint for sale online and at hardware stores (Bartlett had there own product which was boiled to eliminate fungal properties. Some myths never fade completely. Bartlett also stopped the special process of cleaning and sealing lg.cavities because structural weakness leads to eventual failure in spite of expensive treatment. BTW, how is it we went to the moon in1969 but did not invent the upside catsup bottle until 1985 ?...

[@Chollanger148-pv8jp]

If you really like science you should try and find proof of the earth's curve. I was taught that we can see ships sail over the curve but the basic repeatable observation is that of perspective. Zooming in makes the ship reappear

[@Chollanger148-pv8jp]

And noone went to the moon

[@scurvyphansen]

@@Chollanger148-pv8jp hahahaha

[@moon_dog4]

Which if true then 400 thousand Nasa employees and 200 thousand vendor companies were all involved in the sec​ret and all those people have kept the secret to this day@@Chollanger148-pv8jp

[@rocketsurgery8337]

Thanks! I saw this video a number of months ago and ordered some of the polish. I did notice that after I cut a large Branch off there was a lot of moisture in the wood and I decided to wait a few days for it to dry. When I did apply the sealer I noticed it's soaked into the wood like a sponge, I believe if I would have done it right away the moisture in the wood wouldn't have allowed this. I plan on recoating just before winter as an added precaution.

[@vasilyshilimov4147]

I am learning how to look after trees. Your videos are very informative and you are good speaker. Thanks for sharing !

[@4rah46]

Thanks for the tip, this product has worked well on Live Oaks in Texas. Only used it for branch trimming up 5 inch diameter, 2 years later and all healing nicely

[@passionfruitestate9691]

I'm going to try this method with dormant pruning grapevines this season. Grapevines are pruned every year and have an issue with wood diseases entering the cut wounds on wet days which leads to lower productivity over 10-15 years before replanting. There are a few newer wound healing products for grapevines but are not readily available nationwide.

[@bikedawg]

Great idea! I was thinking of using honey because of its anti bacterial properties.

[@zktube]

thank you very much from brazil

[@drsundgren]

Great video. Thank you!

[@TherealBigJohnSt33l]

Oh wow. I have that and never knew?!

[@ame4hi304]

will try it on my fruit tree.

[@21gonza21]

Great video! Have a question, just how often do you apply the feed-and wax?

[@Chollanger148-pv8jp]

The worth of this method is preventing boring insects and preventing dry out. Alex shigo would have something to say but i don't think he would hate it

[@Jay-yy9ol]

Hi. There is an oak tree in the back yard of a house we just bought that has five trunks and four of them have holes around the base. After searching online for a treatment, I’m stunned to find there is no agreed on solution for dressing this kind of wound. Why? It’s like finding five ways to fill a tooth cavity. In 2020, there is one scientifically proven and accepted treatment for filling a cavity.

[@levonabrahamyan1483]

You wrote "In 2020, there is one scientifically proven and accepted treatment for filling a cavity." Could you precise what is that scientifically proven treatment? or could you refer to that paper? Thank you.

[@mazzacano]

Thanks for the informative video clips. How often should the Feed-N-Wax be applied please? Once a year, until the wound heals? Your reply would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[@wavedenizen]

Yes, he states in another video to re apply once a year, I guess untill the callous stops growing which could be between 5-10 years depending on the size of the wound and it's environment

[@Curtis69213]

i use it when needed. furniture does not require once a year given how good this stuff is

[@TreeCreature]

Have you been able to return to these trees and see the effects of this practice? If so how would you compare this to an untreated wound or a wound smeared in pine sap? Thankyou

[@overgrowthplanet7531]

Good question

[@dibiodepaint]

very nice

[@crochetstyle8311]

Helpful video ! Thanks a lot

[@bjoewallace81]

People always say "well this study says this which happens to contradict blah blah blah"! How about trying something yourself. So to those of you that dont think the method in the video has merit try methods yourself and make a you Tube video that shows applying nothing is better.... I would love to see that experiment. I am in the Agriculture industry and practice bonsai where I've tried many different wound sealants and compared it to just leaving the prunning wound bare without any sealant. For major cavity's I will apply either a wood hardener or cement in deep cavity's after scraping out all the rotted wood which is imperative you get all the rotted wood out. Then I fill the cavity with fast drying cement and in bonsai to encourage faster callous formation I scrape the bark around the perimeter on the edge of the cavity. By scraping the perimeter of the cavity just down to the cambium encourages that wood to roll and fill over the cement so you get it to close much faster. It's also very important that you cover the perimeter with thin layer of cut paste or I use plumbers putty to keep it safe from rotting after you scrape down to the cambium. Anyways, this is what we do in bonsai to address wounds and there are those that just leave their prunning cuts bare but in bonsai especially its kinda cool cuz a persons trees speak for how good they really are no matter how much they talk and the ones that are Nay sayers to wound sealant....well their trees usually suck.

[@claytonbell3903]

Great tip! How often should I apply the Feed and Wax?

[@nadrojiskool]

Once a year until the wound has fully closed would be recommended to help stop the colonization of harmful organisms.

[@jameshelling4421]

My cats have scratched through the bark on my wisteria. Should I seal it or cover it or both! Right now I just covered it with a pipe insulation.

[@amaiaamaiaa]

what are the benefits of something like this over those black wound sealers? i have a maple tree with various pruning wounds and the bark falling off on one side of the trunk

[@WatchwomanOnTheWall-zk9po]

I have used bees wax salve and in a pinch I have used pine pitch. Has anyone used pine pitch or made a bees wax salve with pine pitch? I heard one nursery owner say never to use black sealer, and always use white. He says the black sealer gets too hot in the sun. He uses a brand name white acrylic paint formulated made to stop mold growth. What do you all think?

[@levonabrahamyan1483]

Could you please indicate what is that "brand name white acrylic paint formulated made to stop mold growth"? Thank you.

[@Treecarepro]

For about 40, yes forty, years, arborists have NOT been using wound treatments. If a wound treatment has been found lets see the research data following correct scientific procedures.

[@ianm731]

And how many hollowed pruning wounds do you see on trees?

[@666Necropsy]

i understand the comment. there should be some research. i would add normal cuts maybe ok. trees can heal themselves. its when the cut or tear out is large. that is when it kills the tree. i have seen many trees with large holes or wounds. the tree dies and you do not see it anymore. this guy is not creating a product to sell. he works in the industry and needed a way to help trees in bad shape. its well known that large cuts can kill a tree.

[@hbeezey]

Should be able to mix up some paste wax cheaply, mineral oil, wax, tea tree.

[@CaPPeD007]

Would this work on junipers? They always seem to have a hard time recovering from wounds and they are fairly woody so I would think so.

[@TheHivefl]

When you make a large cut, that end grain and wood is dead. Easy experiment to conduct, take two identical raw untreated pieces of wood- coat with the beeswax mix , leave the other bare. Leave outside. I know that trees compartmentalize, however, if a tree can compartmentalize around a more sound solid piece of dead wood, it will be stronger. This is method is applying very basic well understood time tested methods of wood preservation. I have done repeated applications of this product over the last 4 years on some larger live oak my parents have and it has made a significant difference compared to untreated cuts.

[@jswap1]

Here's the follow-up video if anyone is interested: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gmXTo6KHm9Cid68

[@treeguardian4130]

Trees don't heal, they seal. Please refer to Dr. Alex Shigo. Compartmentalization.

[@nadrojiskool]

What does that have to with anything? Gary's methods help preserve the tree when larger cuts are made that might normally kill a tree, so that it has plenty of extra time to go about it's natural compartmentalization just as Dr. Alex Shigo has outlined.

[@gilllewellyn9678]

technically there is certainly a definite distinction between heal and seal as regards trees as Certified Arborists, consultants, and otherwise professional tree care specialists know (thanks to extensive research through videos, books, etc. that Mr. Shigo created - but conceptually "heal" in a broader sense we are simply talking about (in this case) facilitating this trees ability to deal with its injury in a way that enhances its own natural recovery process. And it is in this vain, that I believe Mr. Knowlton is speaking.

[@jamesmckay9966]

This Guy does not know what he is talking about. Once the Heart Wood is reached it is to late. Do not waste your money.

[@creedjo4018]

Would BriWax Original work? I Have some in 1 gallon pails, it was very expensive back in the day 25 years ago it is was about 34 dollars a gallon. I used it for fine furniture finishing; its worth close to $200.00 per gallon today.