It’s not uncommon for certain types of trees to drip sap. The hardwood maple, for example, is known for its sweet and savory sap, which is used to make syrup and sweeteners.
The softwood pine also produces sap, though it’s more bitter and not intended for human consumption.
Whether you have a maple, pine or any tree dripping sap on your lawn, though, you might be wondering how to stop it.
Prune the Tree
In some cases, you can stop a tree from dripping sap by pruning it. Using a pair of sharp gardening shears, cut off any small branches that are dripping sap.
It’s recommended that you prune trees during the spring or fall. When done during the summer or winter, pruning may stress the tree or even kill it.
So, wait until the spring or fall to prune any trees in your landscape that are dripping sap.
Apply a Pruning Sealant
Pruning alone won’t necessarily stop a tree from dripping sap. If you simply cut off a branch that’s dripping sap, the tree will likely continue to drip sap from the area where you cut it.
There’s an easy solution for this problem, however: pruning sealant. Available at most home improvement stores, pruning sealant is used to seal wounds on trees. It’s available in both spray aerosol cans as well as brush-applied liquid.
Using either type, you can seal the parts of the tree where you’ve pruned branches. Once the pruning sealant has dried, the tree won’t be able to drip sap from the areas where you pruned it.
Apply an Insecticide
It’s also a good idea to use an insecticide on any tree that’s dripping sap.
Why is this necessary?
Well, countless pests feast on the nutrient-rich sap. And if you allow these pests to go unchecked, they’ll bore deep holes into the tree, causing it to drip even more sap.
Neem oil is an excellent, safe and all-natural insecticide that works wonders on trees. Just spray a solution of diluted neem oil over the tree, at which point it will remain protected from most common pests.
Be Patient
Aside from pruning, sealing and using an insecticide, there’s not much else that you can do to stop a tree from dripping sap. Rather, you should remain patient while waiting for the tree to stop dripping.
Assuming you’ve pruned the dripping branch or branches – and you’ve applied a pruning sealant over the newly created wounds – it should stop dripping sap eventually.
In the meantime, consider removing any outdoor furniture or accessories underneath the tree so that they aren’t exposed to the sap.
The Woodsman Company offers tree planting, tree pruning and shrub trimming, tree removal and stump grinding as well as a tree wellness program.
If we can help with any of your tree care needs give us a call at 512-846-2535 or 512-940-0799 or
That’s good to know that you can get a spray to put on your trees after pruning that will reduce the amount of sap that comes out. My big tree always drips sap on to my car, and it’s a bit annoying to have to clean it off. I’ll have to consider getting someone to prune it down and then put the sealant on it.
My oak trees (2) are very large possibly 100’s years old. Will they die ? I would hate to lose them, but the sop is all over my plants.
Hi Sue. Thanks for reading. If you are in our service area, North Austin and Williamson County, Texas, give us a call and we’ll be glad to come out and take a look at your trees. If you’re not in our area contact a local arborist to come out and asses your trees. You can search for a local arborist here – http://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist/findanarborist
I have an old grapefruit tree and on one of the larger branches in a few areas what looks like sap is coming out. Its piling up and looks like. “Rice Krispies” pile. I don’t want to cut the entire branch off, should I get some of this neem oil to spray on the areas?
Hi Susan. Thanks for reading. Without seeing the issue we really can’t tell you what you should do in this case. If you are in our service area give us a call and we’ll schedule a time to come take a look. If you are not in our area, find a professional tree care company near you and ask them to take a look.
I do not know what type of tree I have, but it leaked all on my new car and had to put it in shop to have it repainted. I had the tree cut back from hanging over my car, but I am afraid that it will still, and wind will blow onto the car. What can I do, cut top of tree down?
Hi Mary. Thanks for reading. I would not recommend cutting the top of the tree down, which could kill the tree. It is possible that the wind could still blow some sap onto your car. I don’t have a good recommendation in this case.
Hello! Thanks for the great article. I have a huge pine tree that is leaking sap straight out of the trunk. There is an old burl on the side and for several feet above and below the burl the bark has big cracks which leak tons of sap. Is there any product that can fill these cracks? Spray on pruning sealant did not help. Also when applying neem oil, should it be diluted with water? Or a type of alcohol? Or something else? Thanks again!
Thanks for reading Alicia. I reached out to our in-house Arborist and here’s what he has to say. “There is a certain product that I recommend for filling cracks in trees. It is a foam sealant that you can find in a can at local retail stores and only a little is needed to seal the cracks. However, I don’t recommend doing that to a saping tree due to the reality that sap is caused by pressure built up in the tree or wound. So, by proxy you would suppress that pressure instead of allowing the tree to relieve it. Second, follow the label instructions on Neem oil products or buy Neem oil RTU (ready to use).”
I have a 20yr old pine tree that had lower branches removed before I moved in. The white sap drippings are an eye sore. How can I clean up the white dried up sap
Hi Terri. Thanks for reading. There is nothing that we’re aware of that will remove or clean sap from trees, especially thick gumosis (sap) on pine trees.
I have these old Leyland cypress trees that drip sap all over. Does that sap inhibit growth of plants that get covered? I did a bit of landscaping and the new plants are covered in sap.
Hi Diane. Thanks for reading. I would say that the sap could inhibit the growth of plants under the tree, especially if they are small flowering plants.
Hi, there is a tree near my house in san diego – kind of a eucalyptus tree family. It started dripping a lot of sap. There is a swing tied to it and recently I believe a lot of people have started to use the swing. I was wondering if this newly added mechanical stress is causing the tree to ooze sap. I wanted to save the tree – kindly advise.
Hi Venkatesh. Thanks for reading. It’s possible that the swing has added additional stress to the tree but I would suggest you reach out to a local Arborist and have them take a look.
We have a huge Dawn Redwood Tree (75’tall) that is close to our deck. It is a beautiful tree. This year it has been leaking sap over everything, deck, furniture, other flowering plants etc. It has been a sticky mess. We are constantly scrubbing everything down but it is back again the next day. We have never had a problem with this tree leaking sap, this year is the first. Back several years ago (2011), we did lose a few limbs in a freak snowstorm in October. The weight of the snow caused the limbs to break. There have been no other problems since. Can you please let us know what is causing the sap, if there is a way to correct it, we certainly don’t want to take the tree down as it looks healthy but can’t deal with the sticky mess everyday. Thank you! (we are in northern NJ)
Hi Miriam. Thanks for reading. We are not familiar with the trees that grow in your area. I would recommend that you contact a local arborist or tree care company and have them come take a look at your situation.
I have an Elm tree that has been dripping for years in the same place, unfortunately it about twenty feet off the ground. I’m sure I can find someone to climb the tree, but what product do we cover the wound with?
Hi Sam. Thanks for reading. Our in-house Arborist says more than likely that it is due to a bacterial infection known as Slime Flux. There’s not much you can topically apply to suppress it. Instead you will need to let nature take its course or use pressure reduction (contact a local Arborist in your area). None the less, keep looking into this and be informed.
Hello. I live in North Texas and have a 5 year-old green Smoke Tree. It recently started dripping stickly, clear sap. I can see small holes under the sap on the branches. Is this caused by insects? I am an organic gardner and rarely have any problems with insests because I have lots of good bugs that eat bad bugs. What’s going on? I don’t want to lose mmy beutiful tree. Thank you in advance for your reply.
Hi Susan. Thanks for reading. I asked our in-house Arborist about your question and here is his reply.
“Concerning your smoke tree, I’m not too familiar with that type of tree. None the less, the signs you are describing are consistent with Wood Borers or Bark Beetles. In my opinion (based on stats, symptoms & experience) wood borers are the number 1 killer of trees in Texas especially here in Central Texas. Many will say drought, specific damage, etc. kill trees and I agree that those issues are primary and will weaken a tree but the secondary issue, insects & diseases, will do the actual killing.
Having said that, go to an A&M or Forestry web site and look into it further. If your notes and photos compare at that point contact your local County extension agent or Arborist for more direction.”
I have a birch tree leaking sap from the trunk. What can be done?
Hi, I live in Central Illinois. We have (I believe) an evergreen tree that has a deck built around it. Lots of space for the tree to move. However it is was sapping real bad this last summer. We have had some wind storms these last 2 years and have lost numerous branches. We’ve tried over counter sealant that said it’d work, but I bled through. Any advice to what to do? We’d really like to use the area this summer as we screened it in.
We recently had a wind store here in Tennessee, and one of my large Birch trees lost a large limb, had to cut it back at the base of tree. There are two other large limbs left and tree is is good shape. I hope. BUt the Limb we had to cut back ins weeping a lot of sap. Have tried some sealant and it is still weeping, the entire ground is wet underneath it.. What can I do to help the tree or keep from losing the entire tree, I have been here for over 20 years and it was her long before I moved into the home and area.???
Hello. My pecan tree is producing extreme amounts of sap from all over. I can clean my deck and an hour later, looks like it did prior to cleaning. Never seen this excesive tree sap in 50 plus years around pecan trees. Not sure what to do of how long this will last.
My pecan tree are leaving sap all over my yard, car, animals, etc. I can find how to get the sap off car animals. What can I put in my yard to get rid of the sap?