Can i save my trees?

[ClinchValley]

I have a border collie who just loves chasing birds. I mean it is her passion.

She gets awfully torn up when they are in a tree and she cannot reach. So much so that she starts chewing on the tree trunk. In a sense debarking the lower few feet.

Would i be wasting my time to paint the bottom few feet? Say the bottom 4 feet. Something thick and heavy, that would work as the bark to help the tree retain moisture?

Any ideas other than that?

Thinking about running a few strands of hot wire around the trees. See if that stops the nonsense.

Thanks.

 

[skyhightree1]

I have a border collie who just loves chasing birds. I mean it is her passion.

She gets awfully torn up when they are in a tree and she cannot reach. So much so that she starts chewing on the tree trunk. In a sense debarking the lower few feet.

Would i be wasting my time to paint the bottom few feet? Say the bottom 4 feet. Something thick and heavy, that would work as the bark to help the tree retain moisture?

Any ideas other than that?

Thinking about running a few strands of hot wire around the trees. See if that stops the nonsense.

Thanks.

Iff the tree is missing bark there is bandaids for trees and stuff you can paint on the tree... Will it save it... IDK if you value your tree 2 choices get some oversize pvc pipe and cut a slit out and slide over the trunk so the dog cant get ahold of the tree or black drain pipe.. another option which i personally like is putting a shock collar on them and it teaches them pretty quick after you give them a tone and then they keep doing it give them a super hot shock they wont be doing it very much after about 2 full minutes of shocks while they roll on the ground yelping. I train my dogs not to run trash like that.

 

[JMJ Farms]

Wrap a price of hardware cloth around tree. She won't chew on the hardware cloth.

 

[M.Magis]

A lot of people here put a piece of 4" drainage pipe around their trees to keep deer from rubbing them in the fall.
Like this

Edit: After reading a second time, I'm not sure now if you want to protect what you have, or repair the damaged trees. If the tree has been debarked, there's nothing that can be done. The bark doesn't keep the tree from drying out, it supplies the tree with nutrients/water.

 

[skyhightree1]

A lot of people here put a piece of 4" drainage pipe around their trees to keep deer from rubbing them in the fall.
Like this

Edit: After reading a second time, I'm not sure now if you want to protect what you have, or repair the damaged trees. If the tree has been debarked, there's nothing that can be done. The bark doesn't keep the tree from drying out, it supplies the tree with nutrients/water.

Alot of folks use them here to keep rabbits from cutting

 

[greybeard]

I've seen a lot of trees survive fine for many years without the hard outer bark. Once the cambium/xyleum or phloem layer under that bark is gone tho, the tree is gone too.

 

[TN Cattle Man]

One of my Aussies was big into chasing birds... the wife has a couple of Peacocks around that she would love to chase. Decided one day to put the training (shock) collar on her... while I was hiding and out of sight, she took off after one of the Peacocks... just before she reached the bird I zapped her pretty good. Poor dog to this day thinks that the Peacock is the one who zapped her and she hasn't chased a bird since.

 

[skyhightree1]

One of my Aussies was big into chasing birds... the wife has a couple of Peacocks around that she would love to chase. Decided one day to put the training (shock) collar on her... while I was hiding and out of sight, she took off after one of the Peacocks... just before she reached the bird I zapped her pretty good. Poor dog to this day thinks that the Peacock is the one who zapped her and she hasn't chased a bird since.

Some of my coon dogs to this day when they smell a deer or come across its trail run back to me fast as in dont shock me i didn't chase it :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[ClinchValley]

Appreciate the replies everyone.

The smallest of these trees measures 9 inches at the base. Largest measures just shy of 2 feet.

I have seen her chew on a tree just a few times, and always scolded her good. So she doesn't do it in front of me or my fiancé. We never see her do it. Just see the damage done.

I am afraid she is going to kill my 50' tall maple most of all. and a 30' tall and 25' wide katawba(sp?) tree that i really like to watch grow.

I may try the hardware cloth or something like it. Just thought about using chicken wire wrapped around the base, up to around 5' up the trunk.

I think i have a game plan.

How about something to coat the area missing bark? Something to act as the bark, as far as retaining moisture and keeping heat off the important layers. My uncle paints all his fruit trees white from about 3' to the ground. Wondering if this would help me at all. Not sure of the exact logic in painting trunks white.

 

[kenny thomas]

Not sure about repairing the damage but some pepper spray on the bark will stop the chewing. Might have to apply it a couple times if it rains a lot but it will work and not damage the tree

 

[JMJ Farms]

They make a coating you can put on the tree. Won't "repair" the damage but it will shield the "sore". Have used spray paint when I didn't have anything else. I think the main purpose is to keep bugs from attacking it.

 

[greybeard]

Well, my expertise is actually in killing trees, not saving them but from what I have seen, the outer bark does not transport nutrients in either direction. It is just there to protect the vascular system of the tree and that system lies further inside the tree. from what I re,member from my little foresty class on how to kill a tree, the following picture is accurate. I know on pines, sweet gum, and tallow trees, I can skin the outer bark off all the way around, even on young gum & tallow with thin smooth outer bark, and apply herbicide and it will have zero affect on the tree. You have to cut into the xyleum and phloem and apply the chems there to kill the upper tree and the roots.


I would think you would want to do some kind of repair if the skin is showing, to keep it and the inner parts from drying out and keep insects out.
I have in years past seen repair jobs done on pecan orchard trees with mortar mix and some kind of black looking stuff, which looked like tar. The following is from an older instruction on tree repairs and there may be better ways today.

Again, I mostly know how to kill trees, not save them, but to do it, I had a need to know how and why trees worked.

 

[M.Magis]

My grandpa used to do a lot of fruit tree grafting, and he used to coat the graft with tar to protect it. As far as I know it was just regular roofing tar.