If Your Trees Look Sick, Don’t Wait to Look Up a “Tree Doctor” in Salem Oaks!

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 section or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most typical evidence of a problem. Mushroom growth, typically 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 Salem Oaks! Educated to detect and diagnose diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe remedies for problems that afflict Wisconsin trees.

Alterations in leaf color are another identifier. Yellow leaves can be reflective of a fertilizer shortage, often with oaks. Yet, 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!

Avoiding 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 Salem Oaks.

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

Colorado blue spruces fill many yards. A close look, though, might find evidence 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 stop the fungus from decimating and eventually killing these lovely 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 Salem Oaks 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 block root rot, a condition that affects 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 Salem Oaks homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Salem Oaks 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 often a matter of proactivity. Repellents are applied in two ways: injecting directly into trees, or drenching soil beneath for roots to take in.

Just as you wouldn’t miss visiting a doctor for years on end, don’t risk the well-being of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Salem Oaks.