Ask Mr. Smarty Plants

The first thing we would recommend is that you engage a licensed arborist to make these decisions. He will have ladders, proper pruning equipment and pruning paint. We realize that is not free but, compared to the value of your live oak and the expenses of a broken leg, we believe it's the best way to go.

The rule on pruning live oaks is that if the branch is larger around than your thumb, you should paint it with pruning paint. Those suckers in the ground should be nipped off with pruning shears very close to the ground. They will keep coming up, but just persevere. Do not, please, use a weedeater around the tree, ever. Damage to the bark, especially during the times of year when the Nitulidid beetle is active, could quickly cause a sap leakage that would invite the beetle over for a drink. And that beetle might very well already have had a drink at another wounded oak where Oak Wilt was already present, the fungus would stick to the body of the beetle and would infect your tree.

It sounds like your problem mostly is deferred maintenance on the tree (that is, those dead branches). If the arborist you bring in thinks the maintenance can wait until a safer time of year, be sure and do it when the right time comes. After that, taking care of anything like that immediately will keep you from having such a major problem again. It would be a good idea to read the information on Texasoakwilt.org.