Fungus or lichen killing a maple tree?
Louis Dupont
6 years ago
Hi,
I have a maple tree (not sure about the sub-specie, king of look like a Japanese maple tree). Some of its branches looked dead last last summer and those branches were covered with some sort of a fungus and/or lichen:
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[Poll] Tree Lichens...
Comments (9)We have them here too in the trees and on the stone walls. I have never noticed any difference in the health of the trees. If that were true most of the forest here would be in trouble. To the early settlers this was a valuable food source for them. Ewww..spanish moss. It is every where in GA where my Dad lives. When I visit I go to great trouble to pull all I can reach out of his trees. It makes everything so dirty looking! Reminds me of over grown horror movie spider webs.... my 2 cents that and a buck wouldn't buy you a cup of coffee:) Would love to see pictures. Karyn...See MoreFungus or lichen? Deadly photos included!
Comments (7)Thanks! The plant in the picture is a very small one, probably planted where it shouldn't have been, and was removed after the photo was taken. I am new to the property (moved here last Aug.) Most of the other dogwoods - 7 full sized trees, and many of the azaleas - a dozen or so, are showing these signs to a much lesser degree. I think the grass is centipede - its one of those very stout, creeping grasses that excels in our sandy soil - though I know its not Zoysia. It does grow right up to the trunk of all the dogwoods, but not many of the azaleas which are just beyond the woodline and in 'natural areas'. I can't see any difference in the amount of damage/lichen between the plants in the grass and those in the woods. The affected plants are spread out all over the 2+ acre yard - some in full sun, some in partial shade, and across varying moisture conditions. Here in Eastern NC, we did have a hot dry summer last year, and I doubt that any attention was given to these before August. Drainage here is excellent, and doesn't seem to have a bearing on which plants are being affected. I'm not sure about the planting because they've been here at least 10 yrs or more, judging from the rest of the landscaping, probably about 20-25yrs. Thanks again for the input and any ideas!...See MorePls help! Is this fungus killing my trees?
Comments (2)The top two are fungi that are busy at work decomposing the dead wood of your two trees. There may be entire branches that are dead or the fungus has entered the dead heartwood and is feeding off of it. Typically, these fungi are a sign that you tree is already dead or had considerable dead in it and is being decomposed by these fungal organisms. There is nothing you can do other than to keep all dead wood pruned out of a plant and to make proper pruning cuts when you do so. I saw signs of improper pruning (stubs) which can be a major way of introducing disease causing agents into a woody plant body. The third image illustrates harmless lichen using the tree as a physical support. Lichen can grow on rocks! Should you have a tree with a very heavy lichen crop, it 'might' mean that your tree is in trouble, not caused by the lichen, however....See MoreFungus killing our unknown trees!
Comments (21)More pics. Just to confirm, the original post were pictures of the better of the two trees. The first pic here shows the lesser tree, which nearly all the branches have died which we cut off, but two branches still have a tad of growth on them. Still needs a few dead ones taken off which will leave it not even looking like a tree anymore. The second pic shows the same tree (in front) and the second (better) tree behind it. As you can see the 2nd tree still has quite a bit of foliage. In fact, about 30% more than last year so I'm wondering if its still salvageable. Both trees have new shoots coming from the bottom, but the front tree (the one with the most damage) has a LOT more. We used some nylon string to pull the new shoots towards the trunk on both to uncover the boxes. I'm thinking the one with the most damage should come down completely, and maybe leave the 2nd. Thoughts?...See More
Louis Dupont
6 years agoLouis Dupont
6 years agoKennsWoods
6 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
6 years ago
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