Question

Brown stuff  

tree   I live in the coastal Florida panhandle and have gorgeous live oak trees by my deck. One of them is oozing a brown poo looking stuff and I am concerned that it is sick? The deck was built around the tree months ago and there was no digging up of the roots, it is on pillars as not to disturb the tree.

         Thank you,
         Sandi

Answer
Looks like an insect called a borer. The signs of borers would be patches of dark bark or moist patches on the trunk or the frass from the bore hole(which is what this looks like). This would be where the insect has entered the trunk. The  borers can  be controlled with the use of an insecticide called Merit or Onyx. Spray the trunk where there are signs of attack or the wounds. Check with your local nursery for there products. The insecticide will be absorbed by the bark and kill the insects under the bark. Borer damage is usually a sign of the tree being under stress. I would fertilize the tree with 10-10-10 fertilizer at the rate of 1 lb per inch of trunk diameter scattered around the tree and watered in good.Apply the fertilizer just before a rain storm and you will not need to water it in.  Do this now and again in the Spring.