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

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

Leaf loss, in one area or across a tree’s entire crown, is the most common sign 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 Waukesha County! Trained to detect and diagnose diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe treatments for problems that affect Wisconsin trees.

Changes in leaf color are another red flag. Yellow leaves can be evidence of a fertilizer deficiency, often with oaks. Yet, 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!

Avoiding problems is the most sound 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 Waukesha County.

What are they watching for? The aforementioned symptoms, of course. Another sign of potential alarm 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 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 block the fungus from decimating and eventually killing these beautiful 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 Waukesha County are vulnerable to fungi diseases, too. Oaks suffer oak wilt. Elms contract Dutch elm disease. Pre-emptive inspection can identify these realities in time to save the trees.

Application of fungicides can prevent 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 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 an unwelcome initiation for Waukesha County homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Waukesha County and Wisconsin in recent years.

Another invasive, the spotted lanternfly, is moving 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 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 risk the well-being of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Waukesha County.