yesterday the guy running the backhoe on my construction site tied a rope around a fruit tree and pulled his backhoe out of a hole. the rope knocked off about half of the bark on the trunk of the tree or loostened it.

is the tree doomed?

or can i put something on the trunk and tape the bark back on?

tom w

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

The problem is that it will now be more exposed to disease and insect damage. Botnst would be the one to answer.

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1980 300TD-China Blue/Blue MBTex-2nd Owner, 107K (Alt Blau) OBK #15
'06 Chevy Tahoe Z71 (for the wife & 4 kids, current mule) '03 Honda Odyssey (son #1's ride, reluctantly) '99 GMC Suburban (255K+ miles, semi-retired mule) 21' SeaRay Seville (summer escape pod)

B?

Help!

tom w

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

It's doomed man. Trees don't generally survive with more than 1/2 their bark gone.

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You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows - Robert A. Zimmerman

Depends on the species and health of the tree and how much was stripped.

If the bark was stripped completely around the circumference of the tree in any area, it is probably in for a rough time.

What...an...idiot.

Can you post a pic?

The tree may or may not survive. Trees don't heal like animals do, they compartmentalize wounds and seal them off, then grow around them, when possible. When decay sets in, they try and seal it off. There is a term called CODIT - compartmentalization of decay in trees, that describes this process.

Directly underneath the bark of a tree reside the living tissues (xylem, phloem, etc.). So...if a tree is stripped of its bark, these tissues have also been damaged. If you fully girdle a tree, it will die. If it is only partially girdled, it can still survive. It will compensate for the lost tissues.

Loose bark should gently be removed and cut off sharply where it meets solid bark. If you are not comfortable doing so, hire an arborist (ISA certified).

DON'T apply any sealers or paints to the wound. This is old practice and research has shown the tree will heal faster without it. Applying sealer can actually encourage decay and fungal growth.

If the tree heals well and decay does not set it too deepy, it may make it.

Again, a pic would be worth a thousand words.

I would definitely make the idiot pay for it.

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Chris
2007 E550 4Matic - 61,000 Km - Iridium Silver, black leather, Sport package, Premium 2 package
2007 GL450 4Matic - 62,000 Km - Obsidian Black Metallic, black leather, all options
1998 E430 - sold
1989 300E - 333,000 Km - sold
1977 280E - sold
1971 250 - retired

"And a frign hat. They gave me a hat at the annual benefits meeting. I said. how does this benefit me. I dont have anything from the company.. So they gave me a hat." - TheDon

Werd.

ok. i will trim the loose bark.

the tree is not worth much, but i hate to kill any that are unnecessary. i have a track record of saving trees that are so close to houses that i end up taking them out later because when the wind blows they bang against the house!

the guys responsible aren't sharp enough to realize that they were killing the tree. and they don't have the $ to pay for anything. and they are backfilling my house on a slope that is tough to just stand on, so i am going to cut them some slack on this.

after i trim the bark should i take off any branches to compensate?

tom w

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

IMO, no! Another old wives' tale, IMO.

The tree will do what it needs to. It may drop some leaves, don't be alarmed, it is simply equilibrating itself. Leaves produce food for the tree - glucose from photosynthesis. If you cut off a branch to 'compensate' for damage or when planting (to mistakenly compensate for root mass loss), you are doing two negative things -

First - you are diminishing the overall ability of the tree to produce energy. That branch is already supplying various tissues - including roots - with vital energy required to grow and heal. That branch also contains stored energy for next year's growth.

Second - you are creating a wound that will require energy to heal, and in doing so are creating another potential entry point for decay on an already stressed tree.

The tree has already set in motion a complex array of biochemical processes to deal with the damage that has occured. If you remove a branch, the tree will have to compensate once again.

Your tree may shed some leaves and may take a few years to get back on its feet, so to speak. I would hold off on any pruning until it recovers fully.

When pruning the dead bark, try and cut back only what has been damaged and use a clean knife. If it has been dry, and/or the soil is dry, water slowly and deeply and not too often.

Apologies if I'm rambling a bit here or coming off preachy, just a bit of a tree nut I suppose.

Good luck!

__________________
Chris
2007 E550 4Matic - 61,000 Km - Iridium Silver, black leather, Sport package, Premium 2 package
2007 GL450 4Matic - 62,000 Km - Obsidian Black Metallic, black leather, all options
1998 E430 - sold
1989 300E - 333,000 Km - sold
1977 280E - sold
1971 250 - retired

"And a frign hat. They gave me a hat at the annual benefits meeting. I said. how does this benefit me. I dont have anything from the company.. So they gave me a hat." - TheDon

thanks.

what about root pruning?

another wives tale?

tom w

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

saran wrap it?

What Zeus said, plus give it some nutrients and deep watering to help it along with the healing process.

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300TD W124, Two VW TDI Passat Wagons,Cummins Ram 250, Kubota Tractor
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Root pruning is done occasionally to prepare for transplanting. Usually you would root prune one season by chopping in a circle around the tree with a spade. Then next season, you would dig up the rootball using the same circumference. Theory was that the roots would regenerate in the interim and would stay within the new rootball area, allowing for a less stressful transplant, and a larger root mass within the transplanted root ball.

I don't really buy it though. If you transplant at the right time and get enough root mass, you should be able to dig and replant at the same time. i.e. transplant during dormancy and dig up a generous root ball, or better yet bare root transplant a small sapling during dormancy. If you chop the roots, the tree has to regenerate anyway, why not do so in its new location and not have to move it again?

I'm not sure if there are any other reasons to prune roots but it's not generally a good idea, IMO. Same principles.

How is the tree doing?

__________________
Chris
2007 E550 4Matic - 61,000 Km - Iridium Silver, black leather, Sport package, Premium 2 package
2007 GL450 4Matic - 62,000 Km - Obsidian Black Metallic, black leather, all options
1998 E430 - sold
1989 300E - 333,000 Km - sold
1977 280E - sold
1971 250 - retired

"And a frign hat. They gave me a hat at the annual benefits meeting. I said. how does this benefit me. I dont have anything from the company.. So they gave me a hat." - TheDon

thanks, zeus.

tom w

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Zeus, the efficacy of root pruning also varies with species and soil type. If the species has a very elongated root system and/or is in very sandy soil then root pruning a year or so in advance of transplanting can help hold the soil mass around the feeder roots. As I'm sure you know, it isn't the massive roots that absorb water and minerals, it's the fine roots. So if the plant can be encouraged to grow more densely nearer to the area that will be dug-up, the fine roots will be less likely to be disturbed.

In soil that has lots of clay and for plants that have very diffuse roots, the value of root pruning is reduced. I usually root prune when I transplant large woody plants. The rest I don't bother. For my region, time of year is far more important. Dig and transplant in the late fall and water heavily once every week or so until spring bud break usually does it. I don't fertilize until the 2nd year and then I just foliar fertilize until the plant is well established and is growing vigorously. Then I may side dress with a granular fertilizer poured into holes in the ground under the canopy. I've had pretty good success with many native plants, my personal preference.

B