peach trees need help

[JAMES G]

 my goats snuck out yesterday and the DAN G critters decided to feast on my young peach and apple trees. the ate the leaves and what worries me is the ate the bark on all the trees. now i now deer will do the same thing being pain in the rears that the are but is there any thing I can do to help my trees? they are only about three feet tall just put them in this winter and babyed them threw this five month dry spell only for this to happen when the rains start to return is there any thing i can do                                                         {besides a giant bar b que,mr dan g}

[DanG]

Now, how'd you know I was thinkin' 'bout tha barbeque thang? ??? ;D :D :D  One thing ya might do is cut them fruit trees into little chunks.  Fruitwood puts a great flavor into the meat!

I guess I'm gonna hafta come over there and show ya how ta build a goat-proof fence. :  I'll bring the mixer.  Ya got sand and gravel, or I gotta bring that too?  You gonna need 'bout 40 bags of cement and a whole bunch of plywood for forms.  We can cut some 20 foot peckerpoles from the pasture.  That otter be tall enough.

or we can just have a big-a$$ bbq. ;D

[JAMES G]

you will need to bring all the sand,wood gravel, labor you know my back is starting to hurt and this cough  :-*the doctor said I need to go to the lake and just feed the fish with a cane pole but no worry I will leave a mason jar with water in it on the back porch, if you want ice you will need to bring it ,this cant be all one way :D

[Furby]

Never had goat before, can I get an invite to the bbq to give some a try ???

[DanG]

Thanks for the generous offer of a water jug, James, but don't put yerself out.  I gotta wait for the round tuits I've had on back-order for the last 10 years, anyway.  Set a bowl of vinegar out for the goats and hope for the best.

Come on down, Furby!  I think we can make an arrangement. ;D  YEEHAWWW! I ain't been to a goat ropin' in a while, now! 8) 8) 8)


Seriously, though, JAMES G is my son-in-law and I poke fun at him all the time.(he's an easy target. ;D )  If y'all know of any help for his pore little trees, let him know.  He sweated bullets, and a bit of sweat, to get them in on time.

[WDH]

James,

If they ate all the bark off, those stems are probably toast.  That is the bad news.  The good news is that if you keep them watered, they are likely to sprout from the base of the plant below the section of the stem that was goat eaten ???.

The sprouts will grow into new stems and you will have only lost one year's growth.  After any new sprouts appear, prune away the old dead stem above the sprouts and keep the goats either in the pen or on the spit ;D. 

If you decide instead of keeping the goats in the pen to keep them on the spit (BBG Spit that is ), DanG will know what to do next :D :D :D.

[LeeB]

The best way to tell where a goat will get out of a fence is with a 5 gal. bucket of water.

[Dodgy Loner]

Once the bark is removed all the way around a stem, there is nothing you can do to save it.  The inner bark transports sugars produced in the leaves down to the roots, so the roots can no longer get any "food".  However, trees that have lots of carbohydrates stored in their roots will often hang on for several more years before they die, because the roots can still get water to the leaves via the sapwood.  We have a pecan tree and several persimmons that our horses girdled two years ago that still look perfectly healthy, but their time will shortly come.

Like WDH said, trees that have been girdled will often sprout from the roots, but it would be best to replant your trees, for 2 reasons.  First, you mentioned that your trees are only 3 feet tall, which means that they're not old enough to have significant carbohydrate reserves in the roots.  Second, most fruit trees are hybrids that are grafted onto wild rootstock.  Even if your trees did sprout from the roots, the fruit that they produce would not be as big or as sweet as the hybrid varieties.

[WDH]

  Second, most fruit trees are hybrids that are grafted onto wild rootstock.  Even if your trees did sprout from the roots, the fruit that they produce would not be as big or as sweet as the hybrid varieties.

Excellent point, DL ;D.

[JAMES G]

thanks for the info I rekon I need to try and find a sawmiller to cut my trees up for me :D

[WDH]

You will need a micro-sawyer ;D.

[Phorester]

As others have said, there's no hope for the part of the tree where the bark was knawed off.  If you just leave them, or cut them off down at the ground, they will resprout.   But Like Dodgy Loner says, with fruit trees, I suspect they are grafted.  Any sprouting will be below the graft, which means you will then have a tree like the root stock, not the grafted variety you bought.

As already been suggested, it's be best to just replace such little trees.

If you can't find a sawmiller, maybe you can make skewers out of the ones you lost, for the upcoming goat-kabob.

[WDH]

If you can't find a sawmiller, maybe you can make skewers out of the ones you lost, for the upcoming goat-kabob.

Now that is what I call turning a problem into an opportunity  ;D.

[Fla._Deadheader]

Take them logs over to "Paw Paw's. He don't like sawing BIG logs  :