Terrible mistake ! citrus trees HELP

[Justniv]

Hi everyone,
my attempt to prevent ants from taking over the mandarin tree (with aphids) went bad. I tried to block their way with Petroleum jelly - "VASELINE", one year ago..maybe two. And today when I looked at the trunk were the petroleum was, it looks terrible - check the pics-

What should I do ??
Thanx

[ElizabethB]

You have my sympathy. Play "taps". Dig it up. Run it through a chipper or spend a lot of time chopping it up into small pieces and add to a compost pile.

The Cambium Layer has been destroyed. To keep it simple the Cambium Layer is just below the bark. Trees are nourished through the Cambium Layer. That is where water and nutrients are carried from the root system to the upper regions of your tree.

Are you sure your pest were ants and not termites? IDK what the "experts" say - termites DO attack living trees. I have seen it both in my yard and in client's properties.

How thick of a layer of petroleum jelly did you apply? First I would use Aqua Jelly instead f Petroleum Jelly. Apply a thin film more frequently instead of a thick layer. It does not take much to trap insects. A heavy application results in more harm than good.

Sorry for the loss of your tree. Try again.

[imafan26]

I use terro outdoor ant bait instead. I put it at the base of the tree. I have used vaseline and boric acid before on a post to keep ants from bothering the leafcutter beehive. I may have used vaseline and boric acid on my citrus tree once or twice. It is debarking, but mine is probably a result of trestiza virus. My tree is over 20 years old which is an average lifespan for a tree in Hawaii since the disease is so common.

https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/PD-77.pdf
https://www.fftc.agnet.org/library.php?f ... 0714095638
https://www.crec.ifas.ufl.edu/academics/ ... _virus.pdf

[ButterflyLady29]

I've never used it but a product called Tanglefoot was developed just for that kind of situation.

[imafan26]

It is actually hard to find tanglefoot now. It seems no one carries it, and some things are hard to get shipped here, especially chemicals. When I used tanglefoot before, it was really messy and it would also attract dirt and small twigs. It would have to be scraped off and reapplied. It did work, though.