Squirrels, voles, rabbits, and porcupines can be tree pests and can cause serious wounds that damage and kill trees. These small animals feed on tree fruit and nuts, tree roots and root bark, leaf buds, tender newly developed leaves, small tender twigs, and the inner bark of tree trunks and branches.

How do you keep squirrels from damaging trees?

Consider spraying your trees with a taste repellent such as Ropel, cinnamon/cinnamon oil, or capsaicin. Be sure that the label allows its use on plants. (Be doubly sure to follow directions, and never use the product on plants intended for human consumption.) Third, fence the plants so that squirrels can’t get to them.

Do squirrels tear up trees?

Squirrels like to strip the bark from thin-barked trees because such bark is easier to remove than thick bark. The squirrels use the bark to line their nests. Bark removal exposes a tree’s cambium layer, which holds nutrients and sugars produced by the tree.