The connection that birds have with our trees could be extremely beautiful, whether it is a hummingbird fluttering around the flowers or a robin floating in the canopy.
However, it can also get worse. One type of bird that really loves trees is woodpeckers. These birds create holes in the trunk of a tree using their beaks to look for food. This can leave wounds that can damage your trees in the future.
Here are several tips that can help your tree if you think that a woodpecker has been poking at it.
How to Identify Woodpecker Damage
To nibble on the sap inside and grubs of boring insects, woodpeckers jab, poke, and prod at a tree. Thus, what will happen to your tree when they do this?
What Does the Damage Look Like?
It is hard to miss the mark that a woodpecker makes. For instance, one type of woodpecker that most usually target trees is the yellow-bellied sapsuckers. They produce accurate rows of vertical or horizontal holes throughout the trunk of the tree. Typically, the holes are created closely to each other. This ranges from 2 inches to 8 inches in diameter. Since sapsuckers typically return to that particular tree more than once, you will find a lot of holes in the tree. Typically, sapsuckers prefer several trees. This includes fruit trees, birch, spruce, pine, and maple. However, they can also target any type of tree.
A different pest might be poking at your tree if the description above does not quite match what you are seeing.
What Does Woodpecker Damage Do To Trees?
Actually, you do not have to worry about the pecking. You will have to worry about what’s going to happen in the future. Each time your tree is damaged, it leaves access for deadly fungi or pests to get inside. This will further kill or weaken your tree. In addition to that, your tree can be weakened by the feeding if it is already sick before the woodpecker started pecking. If that happens, it will have a more difficult time getting its strength back.
How to Stop Woodpecker Damage
Unfortunately, once the woodpecker has chipped away at your tree, there is no way to heal the damage. However, you don’t have to worry since the birds don’t pose any threat to your tree. Woodpeckers are not a big of an issue as long as you provide your tree all the required nutrients to stay healthy.
However, it is not ideal to simply let the woodpecker peck your tree. It is recommended that you protect it. One way to protect your tree is to wrap the trunk in thin material. Sapsuckers are usually active in September and October, and April and May. Thus, you should cover it during those months. To avoid moisture buildup on the bark of the tree, you should ensure that you get rid of the cover in the off-months. You can always contact a professional Grand Prairie Tree Service company to help you with tree wrapping.
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