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No matter where you go, you’ll notice something peculiar about the trees — the fact that their bottoms are painted white. At first glance, it could look like vandalism. After all, why would anyone paint the trunks of the trees white? Yet, whitewashing is anything but that, as it is actually pretty important! And while it has been around for ages, people are still baffled by this strange yet interesting phenomenon.
Intrigued? Then you’ve come to the right place, as we’ll go in-depth to learn more about whitewashing and its usefulness.
Why Is Whitewashing So Common?
Generally speaking, the purpose of whitewashing is to protect the tree from heat and insects. However, depending on the area, there are many other reasons for whitewashing the trees. Let’s check them out!
Press continue if you want to learn the answer!
Sun Scald
You might sometimes notice that some chunks of a tree’s bark buckle and look as if they are about to fall. In gardening terms, that process is called Winter Sun Scald or Southwest Injury and usually occurs during the tree’s infancy. But what causes this phenomenon? Simply put, Sun Scald happens in areas such as New Mexico, where there is intense sun exposure, and the temperatures fluctuate wildly between day and night.
Fortunately, painting a tree’s trunk white is similar to adding sunscreen. In other words, once you whitewash your young trees, their trunks’ surfaces won’t get dry and cracked as easily anymore.