Weeping Birch advice

[Smith28]

Does anyone know what I can do about a weeping birch? I obviously waited too long to remove a branch and now it is weeping - about a couple of drops every few seconds.

I have read that it's ok and I just have to wait until further into the Spring and it will be ok. Is that true?

Help!

 

[chas brookes]

Hi
I quite often prune my weeping birch this time of year to avoid when the birds are nesting, the sap flow normally slows down after a couple of days. So far there seems to be no ill effect on the tree

 

[blackfeather]

i did one last year and it bled for weeks but it did stop and the tree seems none the worse for it

 

[lannyman8]

it should be ok as long as its not gushing out...

 

[Davidn]

Should be fine, best to prune in the Autumn.

 

[Smith28]

Thanks guys, I felt thoroughly awful and had pictures of a dead half of a tree in weeks to come. It's not gushing, and just today I read an article on how to tap water from a birch in spring so it can't be all that bad I suppose.

Live and learn eh!

 

[treebloke]

Should be fine, best to prune in the Autumn.

It probably will be fine but the best time to prune is when in full leaf and you will not get this problem.

 

[Davidn]

Best for the tree is to prune in autumn, summer pruning, when the tree is in full leaf, can lead to sun scorch and other problems. Although we tend to prune trees all year round, best for the tree is to prune when dormant, autumn/ winter.

 

[Smith28]

Guys, a little update - if you can stay un-confused through my brutal explanation.. The branch I took off was just above the main split in the trunk. Now, everything above that cut on that side of the tree is looking a bit "weepy".. So basically everything after the junction I murdered seems like it is lacking life compared to the other side, because all the crucial life sap juices going to those bits are dripping out off the gash I've left.

I feel awful.. I hope I haven't killed it. Is this likely? Anything else I can do to mitigate the situation?

Edit, It was still dripping today. Same amount, kind of a couple every few seconds.

 

[lannyman8]

dry it of as best as possible then gaffer tape it up nice and tight to form a waterproof coat around the end, this might help a bit but it might just leek straight through, worth a try though...

even if the tree is looking a little sick, it should still be ok in the end, once the sap stops flowing the tree will suck up more water to replace whats been lost...

let us know how you get on with the electrical tape though.

regards.

chris.

 

[Smith28]

Thanks Chris. I'll report back when I have more to report.!

 

[Davidn]

Tape won't do any good, depends where and how deep you've cut. There is what's called a branch bark ridge when pruning you should cut opposite and symmetrically ( difficult to explain) that way you only cut the xylem, think that's the word, for that branch. These are the small tubes that take the moisture up to the leaves. If you cut beyond that ridge tthen you risk severing the xylem for other parts of the tree. All you can do now is hope the tree recovers you can help by making Sure it has enough water if it's a dry spring and maybe put a layer of good mulch about 30 mm deep around the tree but that's it really.
Hope this makes some kind of sense, it's a long time since college.
Good luck

David.

 

[John Fenna]

Make the best of a bad situation - put a collecting tin under the drips to harvest the sap and make Birch Sap Wine.
From what I have been told all Birches make decent wine - not just the Silver Birch - and I have had success from Downey Birch in the past
Never waste Natures bounty
Hopefully you will get enough to use before the branch dries up naturally.