Why put soap on trees?

[Mary McHugh]

In article <3ee87v$qle at it4.kotakk.fi>, jorma.jyrkila at kotakk.fi (Jorma Jyrkila) writes:
|> In article <Pine.A32.3.90.950104000327.20035D-100000 at lexis.pop.upenn.edu>, "Mark E. Hill" <mhill at lexis.pop.upenn.edu> say
|> >My wife and I just took a walk through a local "conservation" area in
|> >Southeastern Pennsylvania. We noticed that someone had tied a bar of
|> >SHIELD (tm) bath soap to a group of young trees and that this has
|> >resulted in a bleached stain running down the trunk.  (I don't know what
|> >kind of trees they were, perhaps oak).

|> >Don´t worry, all will be fine. It´s propably beetles can´t climb up. The surface of tree is slippery.
|> Forester Jorma Jyrkila

Actually, it is more likely that the soap is being used to repel deer.  It is a
common practice for orchards to hang bars of soap on their acres and acres of
fruit trees.  Rumor has it tho, that Irish Spring is the most effective brand :-).

Mary