Ring barking a tree is when a ring of bark and the underlying tissue is removed from the base of a tree, which disrupts the flow of water and nutrients up through the trunk. This can kill the tree and is not something that is often done intentionally, except when you are trying to kill a tree, making sure it does not grow back.
It can happen intentionally, when rabbits decide to gnaw at the base of the tree trying to forage for food, for example, OR by accident while whipper snippering around the base, something I am sure we have all done to a greater or lesser extent.
The ring does not need to be a lot, just a cm width gap all around the trunk can be enough to kill a tree.
You will be able to notice the effect on the tree – defoliated, struggling to put on flowers, tips dying back, looking week and unhealthy, battling to stay alive – not to mention all the bark missing at the base of the tree!
If this happens you will certainly need to take remedial action, if you don’t want to lose it. Of course, with this kind of damage there are no guarantees, but you can
- Get rid of the suckers around the base
- Cut the tree right back, removing all the areas that have died back, to any new growth, just leaving little branches and some healthy leaves – but in general a very hard prune right back.
- Then use some cling wrap and moistened coco pith to wrap the wound, trying to once more create the conduit that allows the water to flow back up through the trunk.
- Do not feed, just let it hydrate and settle down and then return to it and treat as needed.
Enjoy!
Peter