Yesterday morning I was getting ready to leave for the office when I happened to look out into the back yard. Everything looked good except for the Sweet Gum tree that took such a long time and consideration before I bought it. This tree also housed those wonderful Orchard Orioles that are rare in this area. Their nest is still there waiting for their return.
I swapped my shoes for boots so I could go out in the dewey grass to see what was going on with this tree. I was appalled when I got there. All the bark on the trunk from about 6" above the ground to about head high was laying on the ground in strips and dust. The ground around it was churned up with some imprints the size and shape of a deer.
I had to be at work, so I left Husband a note to get in touch with our tree guy and ask about this. He returned the call in the evening so I got to talk to him. He said that if this would be any tree but the Sweet Gum, he would say the tree is a goner. However, the Sweet Gum is an ancient and very strong tree and there is a chance, though it be quite slight, that it might survive this rubbing. He told me to protect it from more rubbing and wait until spring to see if the tree survives. If it leafs out in the spring it will surely live. He also told me to protect any other trees with a less than 3" diameter trunk from rubbing. Apparently there is a buck in this area that has decided that my property is in his territory and killing my trees is his way of proving it.
OK, if this is to be a territory battle, I'll show him who owns what here. Where's my gun! At this point, those big boys around here with the 16 point racks don't impress me, especially the one who attacked my tree! But the idea of venison in the freezer does impress me.
I can only wait to see how and if this Sweet Gum survives the winter. In the meantime, today, Husband will be going around caging all our smaller trees until they get to big for the deer to want to rub. We did put coyote pee on all those yesterday to protect them until today. My back yard smells awful!
I swapped my shoes for boots so I could go out in the dewey grass to see what was going on with this tree. I was appalled when I got there. All the bark on the trunk from about 6" above the ground to about head high was laying on the ground in strips and dust. The ground around it was churned up with some imprints the size and shape of a deer.
I had to be at work, so I left Husband a note to get in touch with our tree guy and ask about this. He returned the call in the evening so I got to talk to him. He said that if this would be any tree but the Sweet Gum, he would say the tree is a goner. However, the Sweet Gum is an ancient and very strong tree and there is a chance, though it be quite slight, that it might survive this rubbing. He told me to protect it from more rubbing and wait until spring to see if the tree survives. If it leafs out in the spring it will surely live. He also told me to protect any other trees with a less than 3" diameter trunk from rubbing. Apparently there is a buck in this area that has decided that my property is in his territory and killing my trees is his way of proving it.
OK, if this is to be a territory battle, I'll show him who owns what here. Where's my gun! At this point, those big boys around here with the 16 point racks don't impress me, especially the one who attacked my tree! But the idea of venison in the freezer does impress me.
I can only wait to see how and if this Sweet Gum survives the winter. In the meantime, today, Husband will be going around caging all our smaller trees until they get to big for the deer to want to rub. We did put coyote pee on all those yesterday to protect them until today. My back yard smells awful!
2 comments:
The way you tell the story is funny. If the victory on the deer consists in coyote pee, I guess the situation it's quite desperate (specially for birds in springtime).
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I was told that there will be liquidambar trees in the World Trade Center Memorial in NY, so even when I dont'know this American tree I suppose it can be big and strong. Your tree deserves a prayer.
Thank you.
I like the Liquid Amber trees. They are an ancient tree fossils found of it from the Jurrasic era and to survive all this time, they'd have to be a very strong tree.
I had finally decided on this one because it was already dug and ready for my garden when I had chosen it. The tree's average mature size is huge (up to 125' tall), thick, well leafed tree, brilliantly colored in the fall and home to a number of native species of birds. It's seeds, though not pleasant to walk on, are plentiful and eaten by the local turkey, deer (probably what originally drew the buck) and foxes. It's amber is thick and gummy and I've read if chewed in small amounts is good for headaches.
The history and strength of this tree would make it a wonderful memorial to those who died at the World Trade Center.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquidambar_styraciflua
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