White stuff on nebari/trunk?

[Noulinator]

Hello all.
Some white stuff is forming on my trees on the nebari/trunk.

I took some pictures of one of my trees to show it.

I dont think its mineral build up because I water with rain water

Is it lichen or something else? I dont like it.

Here are some pictures of my deshojo with the white stuff. Other trees are showing the same thing

Edit: tree is only indoors for the pictures

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

I dont think its mineral build up because I water with rain water

Maybe have a look at your soil components. Most soils are composite minerals and when they break down those release. Fertilizer in its available form, can also form minerals/crystals when it dries.

Citric acid or vinegar can be used to wipe it down and remove it.

 

[Dav4]

Any chance water from the soil is wicking up the bark of the roots? It still looks like mineral deposits to me.

 

[Noulinator]

Maybe have a look at your soil components. Most soils are composite minerals and when they break down those release. Fertilizer in its available form, can also form minerals/crystals when it dries.

Citric acid or vinegar can be used to wipe it down and remove it.

Any chance water from the soil is wicking up the bark of the roots? It still looks like mineral deposits to me.

I guess you are both right! But how can it travel up the trunk? I hit the trunk when watering, but if it is from the soil would it be able to move up the trunk? Or does the wet bark “absorb” it from the soil surface?

 

[Wires_Guy_wires]

The bark is acting like a wick, and similar to a wick, at some point the water is fighting against gravity; it can not go up any further. That's where the water is also spread the thinnest, and thus it evaporates faster there. Once it evaporates, it leaves a while film of minerals on that exact location.
Once you clean it, let it dry. If there is no residue, you can use some vegetable oil on the bark to make it a bit more water repellent. It should then have less of this issue. I don't know how well that works, but it might give you some relief for a while.
Minerals + oils tends to form soap in some conditions, so you might want to repeat the process of cleaning with vinegar or citric acid a couple times a year instead of using the oil.

 

[Noulinator]

The bark is acting like a wick, and similar to a wick, at some point the water is fighting against gravity; it can not go up any further. That's where the water is also spread the thinnest, and thus it evaporates faster there. Once it evaporates, it leaves a while film of minerals on that exact location.
Once you clean it, let it dry. If there is no residue, you can use some vegetable oil on the bark to make it a bit more water repellent. It should then have less of this issue. I don't know how well that works, but it might give you some relief for a while.
Minerals + oils tends to form soap in some conditions, so you might want to repeat the process of cleaning with vinegar or citric acid a couple times a year instead of using the oil.

This makes a lot of sense. Thank you

 

[jeremy_norbury]

A good stiff brush will often remove that stuff too.

It's usually a sign of two things:
- slow evaporation and the wicking effect you see mentioned (highly likely)
- made worse by a poor watering technique - really saturate the entire root surface when watering. Flood with water.