Thanks Jed. That is a nice spot, only a couple minutes away to go sit and eat my lunch. I sealed the cuts and covered them with plywood and corrugated metal. I'm in no hurry to cut off the lower section, plan to run a saw around the bottom to stop any water transfer that would continue, perhaps send out new growth. I'll keep an eye on it and think it best to leave it until it loses moisture and the bark starts to separate, then cut it off. With some additional drying, hopefully get one thick usable chunk for a low table that lays directly on the floor or has short feet, people can sit around it on cushions and drink hot sake! It wouldn't have to be totally dry for something like that, and probably end up in better shape by losing water slowly indoors. Just need the right location for something of that scale, and a way to get such weight indoors.
Can anyone advise how deep a girdling cut needs to be to halt water transfer, just beneath the bark, or deeper?
