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Bark removed from Magnolia

r.haydenr.hayden Posts: 9
in Plants
Hi there,

We have a very large and mature magnolia tree and I noticed that some of the bark has been removed (presumably by a squirrel) on one of the limbs (see picture). There was a bird feeder hanging there (now removed but you can still see the wire that was holding it) -- I wonder if the squirrel was trying to get at that. The tree looks otherwise healthy (including the limb in question). The damage does not extend all of the way around -- about half of the limb's circumference still has intact bark.

Is there anything I should do, e.g. covering the wound somehow?

Thanks.

Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    Current advice from the RHS etc is not to cover wounds because the covering can provide perfect conditions for harmful bacteria etc. 

    i would remove the bird feeder and let the tree recover … but keep an eye on the tree … if that branch begins to show signs of infection my thought is that it’ll be better to cut it back cleanly to an unaffected area … it’s a long time since I’ve grown magnolias so hopefully members with more recent magnolia experience can advise on the best time to do this. 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • pinutpinut Posts: 194



    That is a relatively large wound for the size of branch.

    I would use a sharp stanley knife and clean up the ragged edges of the wound and then seal it with cut paste.

    The exposed wood will rot so apply the cut paste liberally onto the wood as well as the bark. When the paste dries it should look like a patch (like a punture repair patch) that covers an area bigger than the wound.

    Then, let nature take its course. The wound will callus and eventually heal over but it will take a long time.

    If the exposed wood is left untreated then I guesstimate that it would last up to four years under the elements before the fibres rot away enough to cause the branch to snap.

  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Covering wounds in trees IS NOT recommended by tree surgeons or the RHS. Just watch it, but as @Dovefromabove says, if the branch shows signs of sickness, remove it, before it spreads to the rest of the tree.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • pinutpinut Posts: 194
    If you have never done it then stay quiet and just watch and learn.

    Advice given by the RHS and tree surgeons is general advice and may not apply to every situation - it is up to the person on the ground on how to apply it. And, these institutions will acknowledge that theirs' is not the only school of horticulture.

    Pruning the branch off would have been the easy option (and I hinted at that with my comment about the size of the wound) but my impression was that the OP wanted to repair an otherwise healthy branch so gave advice accordingly.

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