If you've noticed a dark, wet streak running down a trunk with a smell that stops you in your tracks, you're probably looking at bacterial wetwood, also called slime flux. It looks alarming, and understandably so.
The good news is that wetwood alone usually isn't a death sentence for the tree. It's a bacterial infection inside the trunk that produces gas pressure, forcing sap and bacteria out through cracks or old wounds in the bark.
That said, it's still worth having an arborist take a look. Wetwood often shows up alongside other stress factors, and knowing the full picture helps determine whether the tree just needs monitoring or something more.
Have you noticed any unusual seepage or staining on a tree trunk in your yard this summer?
#TreasureValleyTreeHealth #ArborSafe
Authentic close-up photo of a trunk with visible dark seepage or staining, ideally from a real ArborSafe job site.
Canva text suggestion: "That smell has a name: wetwood" or "Alarming look, manageable problem"