copper wire outside?

nfimb

If i wire a tree and have it outside.

Wouldnt the copper wire Rust/oxidize and either harm the tree or the bark somehow?

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jjeter

Yes is will oxidize (actually it is already oxidized due to the way it is annealed). No, it will not hurt your tree unless the tree grows around the wire and then only unsightly scars.

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Jeff

Student of Bonsai

Graydon

Agreed - it's fine. Oxidization is a normal process and will not harm the tree. As time passes the brightness of the copper will begin to darken and actually blend in with the bark making it look a little less obtrusive.

For what it's worth aluminum wire also oxidizes outside. It gets a white formation on it and to me looks not so good. Not harmful but a bit unsightly.

Don't forget - recycle your old used wire. Copper is getting expensive and so is aluminum. Unless you are wiring hundreds of trees it's hardly worth the effort (money you get at scrap metal yard) but it's the right thing to do. I give my scrap to one of those people driving around in old pick up trucks looking for used appliances by the curb.

Sorry about the rant...

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GrumbleGuts

Copper appears in nature as the native metal. this means that it is so chemically inert, it can stay in the ground for millions of years with boiling hot water percolating through it without oxidising enough to disappear. the amount of oxidation your copper wire will undergo will be so little as to be negligible.

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When I battle with water bombs I freeze them first.