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

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

Leaf loss, in one section or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most typical sign 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 Willow Creek! Trained to detect and diagnose diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe treatments for ailments that afflict Wisconsin trees.

Alterations in leaf color are another identifier. Yellow leaves can be symptomatic of a fertilizer shortage, often with oaks. However, yellow is the normal color of leaves on a sunburst locust tree. A Certified Arborist recognizes the difference, and how to interpret the messages of leaf colors!

Averting 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 Willow Creek.

What are they looking for? The aforementioned symptoms, of course. Another area of potential alarm is crevices or cavities in trees, where moisture and insects gather. The goal is to spot existing or potential problems early. Blocking a disease or insect infestation is far simpler than curing them once established.

Colorado blue spruces occupy 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 giveaway. 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 appearance, yet far more resistance to insects and disease. Concolor firs and Norway spruces are substitutes for Colorado spruces.

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

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

Insect pests pose serious threats 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 introduction for Willow Creek homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Willow Creek and Wisconsin in recent years.

Another invasive, the spotted lanternfly, is heading 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.

Avoiding 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 take in.

Just as you wouldn’t miss visiting 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 Willow Creek.