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Management Event
July 09, 2016
Group: Walnut Creek Wild Ones
Location: Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park, Austin, 78753
Event Notes: I followed up on a series of girdling projects from last year, stripping new shoots from the base of the tree and removing bark that was filling in over the girdled gap. Trees girdled in October and early November seem to have stayed girdled. Trees girdled after early November have new bark growing in the gaps, as if portions of the cambium layer had been left behind. I suspect that the new layer of sapwood begins forming in November (with cambium cells mixed in) and that the thick sap that remains on the trunk in the spring is essentially a solution of nutrients and cambium cells. Indeed, trees girdled in February and March look as if the bark was formed from thick paint running down across the gap. More follow-up is needed, as there are many more trees in this condition.
