Tree smells like vinegar

[kc]

I have an old oak tree (probably as old as my house--81 years old)...I'm trying to treat it well so that it will last even longer...today I was pulling ivy off the trunk and I noticed that there was a distinct smell of vinegar coming from the tree bark. When I leaned closer, I confirmed it was definitely coming from the tree--kind of a clean smell, like apple cider vinegar but I find it strange! Kirsten

[David Bockman]

"kc" wrote in news:L9ydnd-fw9MRl1 [e-mail]:

Kirsten,

I split a lot of red oak for firewood, and I too have experienced that smell-- vinegar or almost a mustard smell from the wood. If you were smelling it from pulling ivy, I suspect it's coming from the corky bark and not the interior wood, so I wouldn't worry.

[Janet Baraclough]

The message from "kc" contains these words:

You're probably smelling tannin, a natural preservative in oak bark. It used to be harvested for the natural preservation of animal hide, to make it into leather.

Janet.