My husband and I bought a house on a lake about six years ago now. The lot is full of spruce trees. One very large tree grows right next to the house. It looks healthy and although we do have very hot, dry summers, this tree's roots would be in contact with the water it is so close to. However, it drips sap continuously. There's a railing underneath which is covered in sap. I noticed that someone had cut some branches off the tree, and this was the source of the dripping. I was told to take the branches off next to the 'collar', where the branch meets the trunk. I did this last spring, and the sap kept running. I painted the cut over with black tremclad paint, and it bled through that. Next I troweled on some roofing compound, and it bled through that too. Now I've got black spotting instead of just clear sap, where the sap has blended with the stuff I've put on it. This tree gives us great summer shade and helps cool the interior of the house in summer, so I'd hate to lose it. Does anyone know of a way I could get this tree to stop dripping?
