River Birch partially leafed out, some dry branches
I planted a large River Birch in Spring last year (2017). It was in a very large container Lowes and was about 10-12 ft tall when planted. I dug a huge hole when I planted it and did my best to loosen up the root ball a bit. The soil where I planted it is heavy clay. On a Lowe's employee recommendation, I planted it in a mix of the original clay soil, Clay Breaker mix, and Miracle Grow Tree and Shrub soil. It did great all year, spread new limbs and grew two to three feet in height.
This month (Spring 2018) when it started leafing out I have noticed some branches are not leafing out at all. The branches that are leafing out are dry and fail the scratch test (no green under bark) , the branches with leaves are just fine. The spot it is in gets very moist after hard rain.
We had a very cold January here in the mid-Atlantic, with temps around 0-5 degrees for a week. Not sure if it is just that the tree is stressed from being too large when planted, cold damage, or some infection. I did notice a spotty green-ish coating on some parts of the main trunk (see pictures), not sure it it is normal or not.
My questions are: Is there anything I can do to help the tree along recovery-wise or is this just wait and see situation? Is the greenish coating/mildew problematic?
Thanks in advance. Let me know if more pictures would be useful.
Comments (6)
NHBabs z4b-5a NH
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Is this a River Birch?
Comments (3)Personally I'd take that tree down in a heart beat. It has terrible structure and is way past its prime. ===>>> DITTO its going to be nothing but problems from here in out ... heck.. it doesnt even look like it gives any usable shade ... and the canopy looks very sparse.. but i dont know if that is the usual in your zone .. in winter ... be done with it ... its the end of the line for that one.. but it opens a vast potential.. for you to make your mark on this yard ... you can do so much better ... and.. unless its an optical delusion.. i wouldnt be surprised if the power company doesnt show up one day and torture it with some creative pruning .... sorry ... i am with the neighbor on this one.. and be sure to use it politically .. to make her a better neighbor .... a long story about how she is right.. and you are doing it all for her.. blah.. blah .... lol .. try to get some mileage out of it .. ken...See MoreWhen to prune River Birch
Comments (20)There are some "absolutes" posted above that aren't correct. The intents were fine, but the end messages give false info. As formandfoliage alluded to, there are times that certain "sealers" have been proven to be beneficial. They definitely have their disadvantages in typical applications, but that doesn't meant they are always the wrong thing to do. Just don't use them unless you are sure they are needed, and usually they are not the best solution. Another point that is a little misguided is that sap bleeding doesn't hurt trees. While it's true that most healthy trees can endure the process without any problem, it's not true that it doesn't stress the trees or atttract problems in some cases. The process costs the tree stored energy, and this can be a problem for a weak tree or one faced with higher than normal disease/pest pressures. There can also be additional pest and disease issues brought on by bleeding. Some pests are attracted to tree wounds (particularly when the wound is bleeding) of certain species of trees. So, even though it's not normally a problem for most healthy trees, it's just not true that bleeding is completely harmless....See MoreRiver Birch: 2 Trunks leaf out, 1 not, dead?
Comments (10)As bboy mentioned, it's common to find clump birches sold in garden stores that are multiple plants growing out of a container and those are problematic. Tree growers on the other hand don't normally do it this way though and you did say you bought it b&b so I have to ask. Do all the trunks come together at some point or do they all appear to have their own root systems? I know you already indicated that they "join" and there is already a new stem forming so I just want to clear that up. What is the caliper of the widest trunk at the widest point? 15' can still be a young plant that if a single stem can regrow an additional leader in the course of 2-3 years unless I am misunderstanding, it looks like you already have your new leader there. If so, cut off the dead stem and let the new one take its place. Wait until the tree leafs out so you are certain it's dead....See MoreRiver birch slow to leaf out
Comments (6)I have a similar problem, over in VA. The lower branches of my big River Birch tree are leafy, but one trunk only had small leaves, while another looks almost dead. Pictures attached. I remember last year being concerned about yellowish leaves, and we had a difficult winter, with temperatures down to 0 C, and big fluctuations between 50s-70s and low 20s until late in spring. Is this going to just be a slow year, or is the tree dying? Do we prune? Let it recover on its own? Deep-water? Feed? Ours is pretty big, but I'm not sure how old. Easily 10+ years, from the history of the house. In the image, the leaves on the left hand side are the tree's lower branches on the front trunk. Contrast with the top of the tree, and the other two trunks, one of which is essentially bare. Will followup with a detail picture of the bare branches....See More
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
6 years agoJim Bo
6 years agolast modified: 6 years ago@ken_adrian I am located in Virginia, Zone 7. I got it home using a utility trailer I pull with my Camry, it was a stretch as you can see from the picture below. Not quite a Prius, but what you pictured was close, lol. I have never perked my soil. Thanks for the links, I will read up and water smarter. There are many river birches in my neighborhood that all do well. My backyard has very little shade so I was gung-ho to get some trees in place quick and probably was a little impatient with regards to tree size. Thanks for the info
l pinkmountain
5 years agolast modified: 5 years ago
Tammy-Jesse McCracken
2 years ago
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5