Watered down white emulsion, applied as a wash but it has to be one without vinyl in it. And you must water it down, use it like a wash, which means the stems won't actually be properly white - works much better on Betula, which already have very pale, almost white trunks.

a lot of the councils round here in norkolk have painted a lot of the trees white at car hight that are very close to the road . they look quite healthy and happy and very bright white .the bands of white are about 4-5 feet high and right round the tree.it mite be worth asking them . the trees they have painted are big old oak trees.

We've got one like that here in Ealing, Nosey, and it's an oak tree too - but very old, and the bark on those is all gnarly and bumpy, so you always get cracks in the white, which doesn't matter for traffic, and I'm not sure what they use, most likely water based emulsion - I suspect Rachel wants a clean solid white for her Prunus for aesthetic reasons though, and the bark on those is smooth and greenish, usually.

yes i guess your right bamboo interesting none the less

thanks for that both of you. I don't suppose the rose will mind as it gets its nutrients from the soil. Perhaps I'll just try and find a cheap organic white paint, certainly non vinyl. And you are right I am going for the aesthetic thing.
Rachel

cant you wrap a white sleave round the trunks as aposed to painting them perhaps.just a thaught .

That is not a bad idea; then when the cloth gets discoloured I could paint that with anything I like. Thank you that is a distinct possibility.

or you could use a light plastic so it doesnt discolour rachel

no, it has to look or indeed actually be painted, like trees in north Africa or the med. The end of the garden is darkish and although the prunus is forward of the end (if you get my drift) I want to lighten them up, sort of re-focus them. I might also plant silver birches behind them. I don't know, but I do want the prunus white. The cloth would also be a good non permanent solution.

brilliant pitty you couldnt get that white reflective stuff you get on iluminous clothes and signs etc lol .you have got my interest up id like to see your garden finished if ya wouldnt mind please rachel.