If Your Trees Look Ill, Don’t Wait to Look Up a “Tree Doctor” in Cambridge!

Trees, like people and animals, get ill. How do you locate a “tree doctor” if your trees show indicators of poor health?

Leaf loss, in one area or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most typical evidence of a problem. Mushroom growth, regularly from a trunk or base, is another. A spate of dead limbs can be a symptom.

An ISA-Certified Arborist from Dorshak Tree Specialists is your best bet for prompt, responsive tree treatment service in Cambridge! Trained to detect and analyze diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe remedies for problems that affect Wisconsin trees.

Alterations in leaf color are another red flag. Yellow leaves can be evidence of a fertilizer deficit, often with oaks. However, yellow is the natural color of leaves on a sunburst locust tree. A Certified Arborist knows the difference, and how to interpret the messages of leaf colors!

Preventing problems is the most effective approach to tree health. It’s advisable to have your trees inspected every three to five years by a Certified Arborist. Dorshak Tree Service, with seven Certified Arborists on staff, offers this service for free for tree owners in and around Cambridge.

What are they hunting for? The aforementioned symptoms, of course. Another area of concern is crevices or cavities in trees, where moisture and insects collect. The goal is to spot ongoing or possible problems proactively. Preventing a disease or insect infestation is much simpler than curing them once established.

Colorado blue spruces dot many yards. A close look, though, might discover proof of Rhizosphaera needle cast, a fungus that attacks this non-native species. Brown needles, or piles of needles beneath a tree, are a symptom. Treatment can block the fungus from decimating and eventually killing these beautiful trees.

Another possibility – again, long before reaching this point – is planting trees with similar appearance, yet much more resistance to insects and disease. Concolor firs and Norway spruces are alternatives to Colorado spruces.

Other tree species in Cambridge are vulnerable to fungi diseases, too. Oaks suffer oak wilt. Elms contract Dutch elm disease. Proactive inspection can identify these conditions in time to save the trees.

Application of fungicides can prevent root rot, an ailment that affects trees growing in wet soil. Root rot isn’t choosy, either – its decay affects trees from a multitude of species.

Insect pests pose serious dangers to residential trees. Insects are usually host specific, meaning they target one species. The deadly bronze birch borer goes after birches. Linden borers mainly target lindens. 

The emerald ash borer has been an unwelcome introduction for Cambridge homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Cambridge and Wisconsin in recent years.

Another invasive, the spotted lanternfly, is inching west after its discovery in Pennsylvania in 2014. The China native feeds on more than 70 tree species, including maples, oaks, lindens, hickory and black walnut.

Preventing insect damage, once again, is about proactivity. Repellents are applied in two ways: injecting directly into trees, or drenching soil beneath for roots to absorb.

Just as you wouldn’t skip seeing a doctor for years on end, don’t gamble with the health of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Cambridge.