Tree paint

Tree paint, also known as wound dressing, is any substance applied to damaged surfaces of a tree intended to improve its health. It is commonly applied after pruning, or at locations where the tree bark has been damaged.[1]

Tree paint on the base of a Norway maple in Chișinău, Moldova

Description
White tree paint on trees along a road in Hefei, China

Tree guard paints are sold as organic and non-organic products. Some gardeners use a light-colored interior latex-based paint diluted with 50% water.

Both sunburn and sun scald can cause the tree's bark to crack or die, resulting in additional stress which is compounded by insects and parasites that enter the barkless wood, an invasion that will ultimately shorten the tree's life. Tree paint or whitewash protects against this.[2]

Some tree paints, depending on ingredients, also protect against insects and rodents. For example, neem oil has been used by Indian farmers for thousands of years, for many uses, including as a natural insect repellent and insecticide. Plants sprayed with diluted neem oil repel insects, and smothers those who come into contact with it, ultimately killing most insects that ingest the product within 1–3 days.

Castor oil, derived from the castor tree seed, gives a coated surface an unpleasant taste to rodents, such as rats, moles, voles, gophers and rabbits that may otherwise gnaw on the tree's bark.[3]

Tree paint may help to prevent disease-carrying insects from entering a wounded tree.[4] Studies have shown that wound dressing must be applied immediately after damage or pruning. Even a delay of three days can be too long.[1]

White tree paint is commonly applied to citrus trees to keep the affected tissues from overheating, as dark-colored paint can raise the surface temperature of the treated tissues. The classic tree paint is black, because it is based on an asphalt emulsion.

Consumer versions of tree paint may come in spray cans, commercial application may involve paint guns. Tree paint can also applied by brush.

An organic tree paint can be made; it is similar to a brushable mud.

References
  1. Juzwik, Jennifer, French, D.W., Jeresek, Jon, Overland Spread of the Oak Wilt Fungus in Minnesota, Journal of Arboriculture 11(11): November 1985 323
  2. "California Agriculture PDF" (PDF). ucce.ucdavis.edu. June 1970. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  3. http://www.thegardenacademy.com/Organic_Tree_Paint.html
  4. A Guide to Successful Pruning, Pruning Deciduous Trees


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