The Uses of Plum Tree Sap

A Tree’s Blood

• Sap circulates throughout the plum tree much like blood circulates in human bodies. The sap contains vital water, hormones, sugar and minerals necessary to keep the plum tree alive and travels from the roots to the tree's leafy branches. Plum sap gathers at holes and cracks to protect the tree from further injury.

Tree Regulator

• Plum trees use plum sap to regulate the pressure and temperature of the tree. Tree sap produces carbon dioxide, which occasionally builds pressure within the tree. If the pressure is too high, the sap flows out of the trunk through cracks to relieve tension. Additionally, plum sap regulates the temperature within the tree. In freezing weather, the roots transfer water to the sap to ensure that sap levels are constantly replenished and circulating throughout the tree. The circulating sap keeps the tree from freezing.

Insect Food

• Many insects use plum sap for nourishment, one of which is the scale. You can tell if your plum tree has scales because numerous purple bumps appear on the trunk and branches of your tree. Another indication of scales is sap dripping from your plum tree. Scales are nuisance that can be treated naturally or removed by hand. Ants and ladybugs are natural predators of scales. You can remove scales easily by hand and treat the area with a preventative spray.

Illness Alert

• Sap is also used to signal a tree’s serious illness. Trees with large amounts of leaking brown sap most likely have peach tree borers. Peach tree borers are one of the most destructive pests for all stone fruit trees because they are extremely difficult to remove. The insect resides and feeds under the bark of the plum tree until the tree weakens and dies. Pesticides are unable to effectively travel beneath the bark to rid the tree of borers. While the death of the tree is unfortunate, the oozing sap is useful because it alerts the owner to remove the tree to prevent the borers from spreading to other trees. The most effective way to deter borers is to treat the plum tree with preventative sprays.