If Your Trees Look Ill, Don’t Wait to Look For a “Tree Doctor” in Oak Creek!

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

Leaf loss, in one section or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most usual indicator 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 choice for prompt, responsive tree treatment service in Oak Creek! Trained to spot and analyze diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe solutions for problems that afflict Wisconsin trees.

Changes in leaf color are another red flag. Yellow leaves can be reflective of a fertilizer deficit, 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 read the messages of leaf colors!

Avoiding problems is the most practical 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 Oak Creek.

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

Colorado blue spruces dot many yards. A close inspection, 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 symptom. Treatment can thwart the fungus from decimating and eventually killing these stunning trees.

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

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

Application of fungicides can block root rot, an ailment that affects trees growing in wet soil. Root rot isn’t choosy, 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 goes after birches. Linden borers mainly target lindens. 

The emerald ash borer has been a rude initiation for Oak Creek homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Oak Creek 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 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 risk the well-being of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Oak Creek.