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

Trees, like people and animals, get sick. 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 evidence 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 Lakefield! Educated to recognize and analyze diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe remedies for ailments that afflict Wisconsin trees.

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

Averting 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 Lakefield.

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 existing or potential problems proactively. Avoiding a disease or insect infestation is far easier than curing them once established.

Colorado blue spruces occupy many yards. A close viewing, though, might find evidence of Rhizosphaera needle cast, a fungus that attacks this non-native species. Brown needles, or collected needles beneath a tree, are a symptom. Treatment can halt the fungus from decimating and ultimately 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 Lakefield are susceptible 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, an ailment that affects trees growing in wet soil. Root rot isn’t choosy, either – its decay affects trees from a variety of species.

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

The emerald ash borer has been an unwelcome initiation for Lakefield homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Lakefield 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 harm, once again, is about 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 seeing a doctor for years on end, don’t risk the health of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Lakefield.