Hi doogie2390,
Thank you for a very interesting question.
Your tree is called a Honey Locust or Honeylocust (Gledistia
triacanthos) and is an arborescent legume, similar to the Acacias.
I live in Arizona too and a lot of sap is oozing out from the bark of
my Shoestring Acacia (a legume). First year it ever did this, and
it's producing a lot of golden colored sap in various lower joints
where it was pruned and also higher up where it wasn't pruned.
Alarmed when it first occured, I called a friend of mine who is the
manager of a large nursery to inquire what was going on and was it
serious.
It is perfectly normal and anything like a legume will bleed excess
sugars out of the bark. Just nature taking it's course!
Various reasons this occured:
- the tree getting older
- warm weather
- drought
- pruning
Some trees, such as birch, dogwood, elm, honey locust, maple, and
walnut exude excessive sap from the wound when pruned in late winter
or early spring. Sap flow does not hurt the tree. Prune these trees in
late spring, summer, or fall to minimize sap flow.
NC State University - Pruning Trees
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/trees-new/text/pruning.html
Yes, it will stop and it probably will start up again throughout the
year. If your tree is growing well and everything looks good then
it's not anything you need to worry about.
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You can read all about your tree and view nice photos at this site:
HiltonPond.org
http://www.hiltonpond.org/ThisWeek021108.html
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U.P. Tree Identification Key from Michigan State University Extension
http://forestry.msu.edu/uptreeid/Species/Locusts.htm#HONEYLOCUST
THE LOCUST TREES Black Locust and Honeylocust
Fabaceae, The Legume or Pea Family
Scroll to middle of page to HONEYLOCUST (Gleditsia triacanthos)
Other Names: Thorntree
Key ID Features: Leaves, Thorns, Fruit
[Click on thumbnails for larger views]
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The Noble Foundation Plant Image Gallery
http://www.noble.org/imagegallery/Woodhtml/HoneyLocust.html
HONEY LOCUST (Honey Shuck)
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Honey Locust, Sweet Locust, Thorny Locust, Sweet Bean Tree, Sweet
Locust, Honey Shucks Locust
Gleditsia triacanthos
Leguminosae (Fabaceae)
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ornamentals/natives/gleditsiatriacanthos.htm
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Honey Locust
http://www-world.cac.washington.edu/home/treetour/hlocust.html
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Answers.com - honey locust
http://www.answers.com/topic/honey-locust
"honey locust, leguminous deciduous tree (Gleditsia triacanthos) of
the family Leguminosae (pulse family), native to the eastern half of
the United States but planted as a shade tree in many regions of the
United States and in other countries, where it is sometimes
naturalized. It has heavily fragrant flowers attractive to bees,
compound leaves made up of small leaflets, and large branching thorns.
The pods, which usually twist with age, are brown, flat, about 12 to
18 in. (30.5?45.7 cm) long, and have a sweet, edible pulp that has
been used to make beer. Pulp of Asian species has substituted for
soap. Wood of the honey locust is durable and has been used chiefly
for fence posts and crossties. A thornless variety is widely planted
in the N United States as a street tree. Other trees called locust
belong to the same family. The honey locust is classified in the
division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Rosales, family
Leguminosae."
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University of Washington Education
http://www-world.cac.washington.edu/home/treetour/hlocust.html
HONEY LOCUST
(Gledistia triacanthos)
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You can view a photo of the sap oozing out of my Acacia here:
http://tinypic.com/view/?pic=nnmo0y
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Search:
personal knowledge and the following keywords:
honeylocust honey locust oozing sap trunk
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Best regards,
tlspiegel |
