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I've got a couple of my fruit trees that are getting hit pretty bad by some bucks scraping their antlers this year. I've clipped off any broken branches, but I'm wondering if there's anything I can do to help protect the trees where the bark has been removed. I'm expecting another nasty winter and I'd really rather not loose any trees when I could do something to help them.

I think we talked about this before -- you really need to fence/cage your trees against deer if you have them.

Fences and cages are great, but I'm asking about what to do after the damage has been done. I've seen some tapes & sealers, but was hoping to hear from some peoples experiences based on using those items.

Hi Teddy
Providing the damaged area does not completely encircle the branch or trunk of the tree then the damage is repairable.
I would suggest using a grafting or pruning paint. This would have a fungicide in its contents that would help keep spores at bay while the tree repairs itself.
One thing I would do before applying is to cut back the edges of the wound to expose clean undamaged wood. This would ensure that the wound will heal quickly and cleanly.
I would not use tape as this will hide any problem that may occur as the wound heals.

Is this what you're talking about or along the lines of what you're thinking?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000IO ... PDKIKX0DER

Greetings, That sounds like a good medic repair, thanks JONA, always good to get your idea, when it comes to fruit trees.
Something to protect from future injury as applestar mantioned.
On job sites they stand 2" X 4" s spaced around trees and straped into place, for protection from machines, that should work well and is less trouble than fencing.
If there were continued assalt I might eat the dear deer.

Richard

@Jona - someone made a post here

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... 33#p344533

about problems with a plum cherry tree and never got a response. That was a month ago and he has never been back, so I don't know if he would see it if you did reply now, but just in case, maybe you could take a look and see if you can help? thanks very much!

Re your plum.
As Rainbow has said, it does look as if your tree is slowly giving up the ghost.
Suggestions.
Try reaching as high up as you can and scrapping of the bark to see if the underlying wood is still green.
If it's green underneath then there is still life in the beast.
However....you do run some risk if you decide to keep it until it finally gives up completely.
One of the biggest killers of both Plum and Cherry is Bacterial Canker. This attacks trees of all ages and can devastate orchards.
Some control can be found in using Copper based sprays. Bordeaux mixture or similar applied early Sept and first week of Oct. can sometimes help...But... if your tree is defoliating heavily in the summer months than I' m afraid that it may well be too late.

If you do remove your tree in the end. Try and re-plant as far away from the original site as you can.

Hope this helps a little. Good luck.

Just in case anyone is curious about an update on this.

I used this spray sealer: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000IO ... UTF8&psc=1

The trees I applied it to seem to have pulled through the winter just fine and are doing well. I'm happy with the results.

Glad they've recovered Teddy. Amazing how tough they can be.

Yeah I was pretty surprised to be completely honest. Some of the trees recovered better than others, but looks like most lived through it.