Disease? Attacking Mature Pin Oak Trees

15 years ago

We recently moved into a new residence - the neighborhood is solidly "suburban" - we have a typical suburban house, on a 1/3 acre yard, in a neighborhood of houses much the same, in a town of neighborhoods much the same. Where no neighborhoods have gone in, there are woods - Nice!

Our house sits on the last lot at the end of a street that stops right at 2 acres of untouched woods. So, we border heavy woods. And when they built our house, only the front part of the lot was cleared for the house - so all woods in the back, too.

As mentioned, this is a new house for us - and when we moved in last summer, we took away structures the former owner had built back there (sheds, gazebos, etc), and thinned out the woods because it was too thick and shady for us. Once we'd cut some of the trees down, we noticed one of the tall oak's (Pin Oak, we believe) leaves were hanging dead off the tree. We hadn't noticed before if it had been dead, or if it rapidly died - it hadn't been readily visible till we thinned some trees out.

A neighbor happened by and told us there is some kind of disease? insect? thing happening to the oak trees in the woods around here.

Now that the leaves are coming out, we see that another tree has the same look of death - no new growth showing, and many of last year's leaves are still hanging brown and dead off of it. (The other oaks' leaves are off, and have new buds and early leaf growth).

I gave a lot of details, because I don't know what detail could be important.

Is it true that there is an "oak thing" going on in the woods of Central Maryland? We have lots of them (still), and one particularly huge one not far from the house.

Does anyone know what this is? And what can be done for it?

Zone 7,

MissMary

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Comments (9)

conifers
15 years ago
Google tree injections. The problem with injecting trees is that once you start, it will never end so the trees are flawed from that point on out. Could be Oak Root Fungus but I don't know. Pin Oak in my parts is usually always the species effected.

Dax
conifers
15 years ago
Google Anthracnose too.
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We have the same thing around my house. We received over a foot and a half of rain in a week and a half. Now redbuds, dogwoods, white and red oaks (I've observed around 10 species around here), yellowood, maples (silver, red, and sugar), sycamore and finally cottonwood all have black and/or yellow/brown on the leaves killing some leaves outright. Now that the rain has stopped and it has been near 90 the last two days, the damage seems to have come to a stop. Perfect conditions for fungus to attack wet and cool but not cold or hot when the spotting began. Trees are used to this especially if it is isolated and short in duration. If your trees are otherwise healthy, they should re leaf. Of course pics will help the experts ID the pest and it might be worse that I mentioned. Have you noticed any other trees doing this in your neighborhood.
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I'd suggest sending the pics to the extension office. The service is free and if it isn't in your county then just use Waukesha county. They will give you direction and if you want confirmation you will have to pay to test it. I don't think you have wilt but if the ext office thinks you do, you might want to pony up to confirm. It will wipe out stands of oaks as the disease is easily spread from one oak to another either by interconnecting roots and from insects. From what you're telling us with multiple trees being effected and slowly dieing you might want to take this a bit more seriously and ditch GW for advice...hmm...maybe you shouldn't be taking mine... and get a professional involved on site.
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veinnalewis, Just wondering how your tree is doing. I was searching on trunk disease of a red oak and found your post and pictures. I have had a very similar thing happen, in short I live in N. TX moved into our house in 2003 and planted trees both live and red oaks. In 2009 all three red oaks had the same thing happen very similar to your pictures and got much worse where we lost one of the three trees. The other two are still here but show a lot of damage. We were told the same thing, paint the area and peel bark off, that Japanese boar beetle was to blame taking advantage of a weak tree. Sad to say I think that was the worst advice, the paint actually suffocated the damaged area making things worse. I'm not an expert but trying my best over the last 10+years to save my red oaks from this and what I have learned was the in the very hard way. Final decision is that that year along with prior years was a very hot and dry summer and the soft young bark was burnt from the late evening setting sun damaging it (very quickly) to the point where the core was showing and there were small holes from a beetle attack. The paint was prolonging the trees natural ability to try and help itself heal, the past four years I have had a board shading the injured side of the trees from the sun setting, don't peel any of the bark off until it falls off naturally, because peeling it off too soon exposes the soft bark to insects and beetles again causing further damage. I have fertilized in the spring, made sure they get plenty of water especially in the summer, and monitored them in the evening to make sure no direct sun was on the injured area and so far this has worked. I hope you get my message and I would like an update as to how your tree is doing. I wanted to try and help someone else with this terrible problem for the red oak trees, by far my favorite kind of tree.
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Natives & veggies, I heard of the oak disease attacking the oak trees out west a while back and I've started to intersperse maple trees here and there on my property so if the oak fungus hits here I will still have some majestic looking trees left. I've had a few oaks drop leaves, dry up and come crashing down... but I'm not sure if it was the disease or lightning causing it. I get some hellish lightning on my little hill that has set trees ablaze but the downpour has put the fires out most times. Each year I buy a few maple trees 6 - 12 inch starts and grow them in pots until they are 10 - 12 feet tall then transplant them out. There are a few maples that are native to Florida so I buy those starts. I've also planted a few sycamore trees and some other trees. I've had to run a few hundred feet of garden hose set on timers to keep them watered until established so thats why I set out only a few each year. The well is located around 1,200 feet away from the furthest corner of my lot so it takes a lot of garden hose to reach. When I lived up north we lost all our elm trees to the dutch elm disease so I know the pain of losing beautiful huge trees. Lou
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
15 years ago
Contact your local extension office and have this conversation with the resident tree expert. Many offices have arborists on staff. Oak Decline is sweeping through Maryland, but only an expert will be able to determine if this is the problem or something else (as mentioned above).
jean001
15 years ago
If it's a pin oak, they retain their leaves through the winter.

So before you panic, find out what, if anything, is going on.
missmary - 6b/Central Maryland
Original Author
15 years ago
This is definitetly not the normal retaining of it's leaves. It is the same thing (whatever it was) that happened to another one of our pin oaks last year (we have about 10 in our own yard, and they fill the woods that surround us).

I am so unfamiliar with calling the local "extension office". Is it in the phone book as "[Name of County] Extension Office". And then you call that number and ask for their "tree expert"? Why does/would the county have a tree expert anyway?? (To take care of the trees in the natural woods of the county??) I wouldn't have thought to do it on my own, but I will try it out.

The other two items mentioned here don't seem to match the look or symptoms of what we're seeing. Thanks, though; we're looking for all suggestions.

Miss Mary
jean001
15 years ago
Can you post photos? Overall and closeup?

And if it's true, as your neighbor says, something is attacking local oaks, the folks at the Extension Service are likely to know.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
15 years ago
Urban forestry has become very important in recent years, with many extension agents becoming very well educated in the science. When I spoke at an Urban Forestry convention a while back, it seemed like half of the attendees were extension agents, most of them trying to earn their ISA (International Society of Arboriculture) certification. It's been that way in SC, AL, NC, GA, FL for quite some time.

I'd be very surprised if your country did NOT have someone on hand who would answer your questions. Let us know, okay?

Here is a link that might be useful: Find your County extension office
alabamatreehugger 8b SW Alabama
15 years ago
Maybe it's bacterial leaf scorch?
hairmetal4ever
15 years ago
It seems that there are spotty patches of trees that look just awful around here. I am also in Maryland, I drive home from work each day from Baltimore County to Columbia, going 70W from 695, to 29 S.

There's a spot on I-70 just east of the Howard County line in Baltimore County where some 30% of the trees, almost all Oaks, are dead and appear to be recently dead. Then, a stretch from there to Rt 29 where everything looks lush and green...and it repeats.

I worry that in 10 years this place will be a virtual grassland with nothing but Tuliptrees, Kudzu, and Red Maples...

Disease? Attacking Mature Pin Oak Trees

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conifers

conifers

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Disease? Attacking Mature Pin Oak Trees

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