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Right after tracing and shaping any wound, shellac its edges to protect the newly exposed cambium. Then take your time carving and scraping smoothly off the wound's surface all shredded, dry, or discolored fibers down to solid sapwood, and apply a neat dab of tree paint. Do the same wherever a branch has been recently torn off its parent member, before decay can set in. (See Fig. 6.)
A form of damage that often puzzles new tree owners is when bark, usually on lower trunks or limbs and especially in young maples, splits open and separates from the wood for no apparent reason. This is caused by frost action, after a midwinter or "false spring" thaw. It can injure trees severely. The thing not to do is peel off the loose bark, thus exposing bare wood, until callus growth at the edges of the wound is well begun, in late spring or summer. Then chip away the flaked bark, shape the lesions (with pointed ends) and paint them up, taking care not to paint the new callus. When you pruned your first tree (Chapter V) you cut off some dead branches and stubs whose decay had progressed into the branch bases, penetrating beyond the cambium to form an incipient cavity. (See Fig, 7.) One of these lesions, at a handy height, is a good place to try your hand at cavity repair. Besides your knife you will need for this work a 3/4-inch gouge (curved) chisel and a wooden or hard-rubber mallet. The object of your work will be, after pruning the stub (Fig, 7), to trace and shape the wound with your knife, to cut away all dead tissues in and around the lesion so that callus can roll in and make a healthy seal. (See Fig. 8.) Use your chisel, tapped by the mallet or the heel of your hand, to chip and shave away all discolored material down to living wood. Slope and smooth the excavation as you go and don't worry if, on this first attempt, you go deeper than you wish you had. Shape, smoothness, and perfect drainage are the important results. Careful painting and the healing process will in time take care of your slips. |
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