Something has injured the bark on some of my small trees and shrubs this winter. What could be causing this?
You may see rodent injury to trees and shrubs in the spring, especially if there has been snow cover over the winter. Ornamental and fruiting plants often become a food source for mice, voles, and rabbits when their normal food supply is covered with snow. Rodents will feed on the bark and young stems of apple, crabapple, roses, barberry, hawthorn, euonymus, viburnums, mountainash, and other woody plants. Damage can be extensive, and complete girdling of trunks and main stems can kill plants, while partial girdling creates wounds for borers and disease organisms to enter, not to mention general weakening of the plant. You can protect stems and tree trunks with hardware cloth formed into cylinders or plastic collars placed around them. Rodent repellents are also available that can be sprayed or painted on trunks and stems.
Thank you.
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