We’re in the process of purchasing a house that has been used as a rental. It’s come to our attention that a tree in the front yard is damaged. We’re buying the home from my parents, so my mother called in a tree guy for advise, but he seemed a little less than knowledgable.
The problem is that the people who were renting the house tied their dogs up close to the tree a lot over the past year. The dogs appear to have chewed the bark off the lower part of the tree trunk. Additionally, the dogs urinated by the tree a lot.
The tree guy said that the crown of the tree looked good, but the dog urine and the loss of bark were worrisome. He offered to fertilize the tree, but couldn’t really offer any opinions on whether it would survive or not. He also said the bark would never grow back, and that his guess is that the tree would die in 4-5 years.
What you need is an arborist, not a “tree guy.” We had a flowering crab in the back yard of our previous house that exhibited many of the symptoms you describe, plus it was losing its leaves at an alarming rate. We had an arborist come out and assess the tree. He would feed it, spray it, do whatever was necessary for the health of the tree. He came back every year to do what needed to be done. I think he charged us in the neighborhood of $125/year. The tree is magnificent today!
You need to cut the bark ‘clean’ around the damaged area…so that the bark damage is sort of neat, untattered…just smooth…
this will encourage healthy healing…
So, use a sharp knife to cut the wounds so that they are clean smooth wounds - if possible.
Also, you need to dress the wounds. with a wound
dressing or pruning paint, if desired. Recent research
has shown that these dressing and paints probably do not
increase the rate of healing. However, they may prevent
drying out and provide some cosmetic effect. Several
commercial materials are available or a couple of coats
of orange shellac will suffice. Areas of torn bark where
tracing have been made can also be treated in this
manner. (see home improvement garden center type store)
Do not fertilize this tree until it recovers. Fertilization can encourage it to grow when it’s energy is needed for repair.
If tree holds up with wound recovery, find a quality tree fertilizer and follow the instructions - which might recommend only fall or spring feeding.
Fight any drough by watering heavy and slowly (to soak) 1-2 per week. Stop if rain is regular.
Cutting wounds clean: Don’t make a complete cut around the curcumference of the trunk so that the top and bottom bark aren’t connected. If the top and bottom bark are separated, the life line is cut off. You’ll need this fancy procedure. It is unlikely the whole circumference of bark is missing, but note this…you need to bridge the gap to save the tree.!!!..also, ‘tree guys’ tend to make money by removal and ‘arborists’ make money by rehab and making trees prosper:
Bridge Grafting Procedure
Trim back through sections of bark.
Using a sharp knife, collect the scions from the branches of the affected tree or from another tree of exactly the same genus and species. Take last year’s growth, either dormant or freshly foliated.
The scions should be collected in such a way that you will remember which is the apical end (the end pointing toward the branch tip) and which is the basal end (the end pointing towards the main trunk). this can be accomplished by making a square cut on the basal end and a sloping cut on the apical end. This is important since the scion must be inserted with the apical end pointing up. Always make the end cuts on the scion wood near a bud, as it’s here that most growth activity occurs.
One of the most successful graft types is the inverted L rind bridge graft. This must be done in late spring and early summer, when the bark lifts away from the cambium easily.
Make an inverted L cut into the bark a short distance below and above the girdle. The cut should be just wide enough to hold the scion. Make sure it passes through to the sapwood (if the bark won’t lift off you haven’t cut far enough).
Twist the knife and the bark should lift away from the sapwood right at the cambium layer (a thin layer of green tissue).
Turn the square cut on the basal end into a sloping cut to match the one on the apical end.
Insert the ends of the scion under the bark , taking note of which end is pointing up and making sure there is good firm contact between the scion and trunk’s cambium.
Tack the scion in place with a small nail. Make sure it’s bowed in the middle away from the trunk to exert pressure under the bark at both ends. Seal the grafts with grafting was.