PRUNING DISEASED TREES 71 



tarring the wound to ward off damp or insect 

 attacks. 



Branches frequently get wrenched from the 

 tree stem during stormy weather, but rarely 

 do we find that such wounds have been at- 

 tended to in the matter of pruning or painting. 

 Injuries to root and bark and attacks of injurious 

 insects and fungus seem beyond the notice of 

 most people, while filling or covering a cavity 

 so as to keep out the damp and prevent rot is 

 rarely thought of. 



In the treatment of wounds that are caused 

 by the removal of branches, the main point is 

 to prevent the wood cracking or becoming 

 diseased before it gets callused over or covered 

 by the cambium. With large surfaces and in 

 the case of certain trees this is by no means 

 easily accomplished. Some trees bleed more 

 freely and for a longer period than others, and 

 the constant exudation causes the wounded 

 surface to become diseased if not periodically 

 attended to in the matter of cleaning and dress- 

 ing. Both the elm and sycamore, though the 

 cambium spreads rapidly, are, owing to this 

 exudation, apt to become diseased at the point 



