If Your Trees Look Sick, Don’t Wait to Summon a “Tree Doctor” in Cedar Park!

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

Leaf loss, in one area 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 Cedar Park! Educated to spot and diagnose diseases and insect pests, these tree specialists prescribe remedies for ailments that afflict Wisconsin trees.

Changes in leaf color are another red flag. Yellow leaves can be symptomatic 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 read 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 Cedar Park.

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

Colorado blue spruces occupy many yards. A close viewing, though, might discover evidence 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 ultimately killing these stunning trees.

Another possibility – 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 substitutes for Colorado spruces.

Other tree species in Cedar Park 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 block root rot, a condition that afflicts trees growing in wet soil. Root rot isn’t picky, 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 mainly target lindens. 

The emerald ash borer has been a rude initiation for Cedar Park homeowners. The Asian invasive has decimated ash trees across Cedar Park 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 miss visiting a doctor for years on end, don’t gamble with the health of your trees. Contact Dorshak Tree Specialists for a complimentary checkup. Yes, their “tree doctors” still make house calls to Cedar Park.