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What's wrong with the emerald green arborvitae?

10 years ago

I have a line of emerald green, they were planted last fall. Half of the trees start yellowing on the bottom, ( see pic pls). All these yellow trees are on the side close a big oak(?) tree. But other half of the trees do not have this problem. Any idea what is happening? Is it too dry? we had a dry summer. TIA

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Comments (20)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
hi

such consistency across multiple specimens makes me think lawn spray ...

no bug or disease would be that uniform ...

any history of such???

the oak has nothing to do with it...

is that how you water them????

ken

ps: another option might be exhaust burn from a machine ....
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
They are at the border of my property. The left side is my property (the one with the sprinter on) and this side is my neighbor's property. Both of us are using the same lawn care company which suppose to use "green" product. And they did not apply anything recently. ( it might be the symptom shown up slowly).

the only machine can be close to them is a lawn mower, but it is strange the other end does NOT have this problem. See more pictures.

Thanks again.
-Greendale

This post was edited by greendale on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 16:58
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Hi Amy. From what I've gathered here so far, I do not believe this foliar death to have anything to do with how the trees were planted or cared for since. The only thing I can come up with is that they might have dried out in shipment or immediately after. FWIW, there are few plants more forgiving than arbor vitae. There is a well-known college-level tree and shrub book (Dirr), wherein this expert states, as his first entry under Thuja occidentalis-the trees you got-"A healthy tree". I don't like the multi-stemmed types like yours, partly because of the snowload issues, but as you state, yours is not an area that typically gets lots of snow. In any case, that has nothing to do with this issue. Ken's advice to water when water is needed is right on and this will usually amount to a once per week thing, barring sufficient rainfall. Someone mentions that all burlap, etc, should be removed, and I agree. But even so, this also would have nothing to do with that foliage dieing off. The rootballs were of decent size. That wasn't the problem. Also, I would not fertilize these trees at all, or at least not until they are well established. And then only very moderately. Additionally, The genus Thuja is one of the most tolerant of all conifers to alkalinity, actually making their best growth in regions having limestone rock near the surface. So the concrete will not be a problem at all for these trees. Mulching around new plantings is always a good idea, but again, the fact that you have not yet done so is not why the dieback occurred. Unless some new bit of info is revealed, I can only surmise that the rootballs got too dry for a little too long, immediately before, during, or after you received the plants. Trees do show a delayed reaction to many stress factors, so good-looking plants could have been damaged before that damage shows up. +oM
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the little round ones are also conifers.. MAYBE something like a Thuja occidentalis globe ... there is some named varieties.. but i cant differentiate ... the JMap's .. as trees.. can be pruned away from the house in an artful arching style.. so they should be fine right where they are ... with that size arb .. see my prior post... IMHO.. its not worth the labor... get rid of them .. yes.. the last are alberta spruce.. or picea glauca conica .... i dont know why you keep saying everything is off topic.. relax.. now.. i would double the bed out front ... and plant basically in the middle.. with things that are DWARF ... so that you have access behind them for maintenance .... just try to remember.. foundation plantings are planted to HIDE the foundation.. not ON THE FOUNDATION... and that is the error the prior owner made ... dont replicate it ... and dont make the worst mistake.. of shopping for replacements at the bigboxstore [or you will just end up with a bunch of arbs and albertas and globes] .... there is a world of conifers out there.. that can make a wonderful addition to the front of your house.. just flip thru a few pages of the posts here in the conifer forum .... but you will have to mail order.. or find local upscale nurseries to find the unique stuff ... good luck ken ps: i love teal.. but i dont know about the shutters.. lol ... and presuming [hopefully] that it is another prior owner issue.. you might want to think that part out ... and if it is your choice.. its the best color scheme i ever saw ... Here is a link that might be useful: link
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I have to backtrack a little and explain that when I planted the first set of trees, I was a COMPLETE newbie. I did not even have the soaker hose down at that point. I was watering them by hand about once a week thinking that would be enough. The soaker hose is that flat fabric kind and I've got two of them connected to a "Y" at the edge of my house...one length that goes down the side of the house is 25 feet, the other length goes toward the yard 50 feet. Together they make a 75 foot run and I read that a length under 100 feet should not be an issue where equal pressure is concerned...am I wrong? There is no "incline" along the length where the water ever has to go uphill, that is an optical illusion. From where the water enters the hose it only goes downhill slightly. I've been using this soaker hose all summer and it seems to do the job well, although I had to use it every day since I did not have time to put mulch down until this fall. I am thinking the reason the first batch died was from obvious lack of water before going into winter and then drying out by spring. Also not having mulch might have been a factor since we got down to -5 last winter. I have a hunch that the drying winds knocked out most of them, since my few survivors were the ones next to the house where they are somewhat protected. Which leads me to another question... What do you think of Wilt-Pruf? Could I prevent some dessication by using it? I was going to go with burlap but that is an awful lot that I would need to wrap...do these even need protection from wind if they get enough water before winter? I think in the spring I will move the one arb with the dead branch to the end of the line and replace it so I can keep the height I have going in that area (I need it there! I don't think want a window in my hedge..haha).
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greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
And yes, that is how I water them, but not very frequently. Also, I mensioned the oak tree is because most of the grass under the trees were always dry and yellow in the whole summer.
Here is a picture of the other end

This post was edited by greendale on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 16:57
maple_grove_gw
10 years ago
Any dogs on the property? It could be caused by "leg-lifting".
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
Close shot of the yellowing
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
drought does not affect one side of the tree...

improper planting does not affect one side of the tree...

it could be transplant shock.. but it does not affect one side of the tree...

being evergreen.. i swear to god.. they could be dead for half a year.. before they brown.. this particular moment in time.. means nothing ...

the insult or injury happens months ago .... they simply dont turn brown fast ...

i cant even blame poor stock.. because they are together in a row ... the browing ones i mean ....

i am thinking i like the dog theory .... [or the kid who uses that playset.. lol ...]

ken

EDIT.. they werent ball and burlap.. and you left the burlap on????

This post was edited by ken_adrian on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 16:58
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
No dog in both house. They were planted one year ago. There might be dogs come to pee on the tree one by one? I would not think dogs are smart like that, beside, this line of trees is vertical to the street, I have another line of same trees along the street side, they do not have this problem. Hmm, what is ball and burlap.( forgive my ignorance)
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
Another shot of the yellowing half, note the last tree at the end is not yellowing.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
plastic pots.. or something else???

ken
outback63 Dennison
10 years ago
Reaction to some kind of chemical spray. Even grass is showing the same die back effect next to the bottom of the Emerald Green' that are effected.

This is not a tree problem.

Dave

This post was edited by Davesconifers on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 20:09
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
Yes, they were in plastic pot. The grass is always like that from day one ( the day these trees were planted).

I just looked the lawn care record, last one was on aug 16 and the following are what they applied: (and I have no idea what they are)

Balanced summer fertilizer 28-0-12
Srike 3 (weed control)
Primers one (disease control)
Halosulfuron pro (nutsedge control)

Any of these may cause the problem?
Thanks for all the advices
-greendale

This post was edited by greendale on Thu, Sep 26, 13 at 20:12
Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
10 years ago
On the Strike 3 label I found mention of "for controll of woody plants" a few pages in. Also there are the usual warnings about drift and not spraying if winds excede 10 mph.

My wild guess is some got on your trees due to wind or spray error. Totally a guess.

Really it seemed listed as a systemic but with all the overspray warnings I figure contact must not be good for plants.

Guys, what was that spray which one of them companies in the north is discovered is killing some trees? Was in the paper months back but my google skills are failing me.

Is that a pretty normal treatment plan? I am not in a suburb so this lawn love stuff is alien to me.

Here is a link that might be useful: strike 3 store with label
kbguess
10 years ago
With the dead grass all summer long, I had two thoughts:

1. Could anyone have applied a persistent herbicide in that area? Some of the herbicides can affect things for a long time.

2. Is there a gas line running underneath? . I know a landscaper that replaced a dead area of lawn & landscaping. The replacement turf & plants died as well. Turns out a gas line had a leak.

Keith
sc77 (6b MA)
10 years ago
I'm not an expert, but that pattern is a dead giveaway. Unless there is a seriously talented dog in the neighborhood, that has to be over spray from sort sort of chemical. The line of damage is just too perfect. For reference, look at the image below of salt damage.

BTW, none of that stuff they are applying is "green". If they aren't keeping the lawn green anyways, why not just use true organics and not have to worry about hurting any of your trees.

Here is a link that might be useful:
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
10 years ago
hmmmm... back to my first sentence.. lol ...

imprelis is what killed new growth on old trees... it didnt look like this... but i am sure you meant the impact

ken
alley_cat_gw_7b
10 years ago
It looks to me like a truck was backed in there....maybe to off load that play set? Drop off mulch,dirt,bagged goods? I did that once and it looked the same, but mine was only one tree and it happened very fast...it didnt take long to see the reaction on the tree. Most pick-up trucks exhaust out the side. Think back...maybe a possibility.......

Al
greendale
Original Author
10 years ago
hi, thanks for all the tips. I think some chemical spray is more convincing. There is no gas line underneath, no truck can access that area. Probably it is the strike 3. I am going to send email to my lawn care company to ask them do not spray anything on the tree next time, hmm, how should I say it, without a solid evidence. Also, is there anything I can do to save these browning branches? Or the whole tree is gonna die?

Thanks a lot.
Greendale
outback63 Dennison
10 years ago
Ask them also to replace the ruined conifers.

Since they are the only ones being paid to care for your lawn they are obligated. If they won't get rid of them for someone else more qualified.

Do you have a contract with them. If so read it and proceed from there.

Sorry about your loss.

One other thing. The dead branches and foliage will never regenerate. That divot of dead area will always be there but could somewhat soften as the plants age if you keep them.

Dave
kayla2014
9 years ago
I'm also having problems with my arborvitaes. I've lost four over the past year. They all seem to die off in the same manner. Does anyone have any thoughts on what is causing this based on the picture?
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
9 years ago
start your own post kayla ...

and tell us where you are.. zone ...

was the driveway new??/ .. lol.. is that a driveway???

how bad was your winter..

etc

just give us some facts to work with ...

ken

ps: those dont look like emerald greens to me ...

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