If Your Trees Look Sick, Don’t Wait to Call a “Tree Doctor” in Fort Atkinson!

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

Leaf loss, in one section or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most usual symptom of a problem. Mushroom growth, usually 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 choice for prompt, responsive tree treatment service in Fort Atkinson! Trained to identify and analyze diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe treatments for problems that afflict Wisconsin trees.

Alterations in leaf color are another symptom. Yellow leaves can be symptomatic 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 read the messages of leaf colors!

Preventing problems is the most efficient 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 Fort Atkinson.

What are they hunting for? The aforementioned symptoms, of course. Another sign of concern is crevices or cavities in trees, where moisture and insects collect. The goal is to identify existing or possible problems early. Avoiding a disease or insect infestation is much easier than curing them once established.

Colorado blue spruces dot many yards. A close viewing, though, might find signs of Rhizosphaera needle cast, a fungus that attacks this non-native species. Brown needles, or piles of needles beneath a tree, are a giveaway. Treatment can stop the fungus from devastating and ultimately killing these stunning trees.

Another option – 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 Fort Atkinson are susceptible 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 block root rot, a condition that afflicts trees growing in wet soil. Root rot isn’t picky, either – its decay affects trees from a wide range of species.

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

The emerald ash borer has been a rude initiation for Fort Atkinson homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Fort Atkinson 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.

Blocking insect harm, once again, is often a matter of 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 well-being of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Fort Atkinson.