Dying carob tree in SF Bay area
 

My big carob tree is looking very sick. I did put in some drip irrigation
around it to feed the surrounding vegetation, so I suspect the roots got
waterlogged. The soil around here is mostly clay. I have removed as much
of the irrigation as I can, but am wondering what to do about the tree. A
great many branches seem to have died out, having only dead leaves on them.
Should I prune all of them back? What can I do to nurse the tree back to
health?

Cheers, Shawn

PS: Any pointers would be most appreciated, my Google searches seem to
return mostly Biblical references.

Dying carob tree in SF Bay area
 

On Mon, 04 Jun 2007 08:21:15 GMT, "Rima Neas"
wrote:

My big carob tree is looking very sick. I did put in some drip irrigation
around it to feed the surrounding vegetation, so I suspect the roots got
waterlogged. The soil around here is mostly clay. I have removed as much
of the irrigation as I can, but am wondering what to do about the tree. A
great many branches seem to have died out, having only dead leaves on them.
Should I prune all of them back? What can I do to nurse the tree back to
health?

Cheers, Shawn

PS: Any pointers would be most appreciated, my Google searches seem to
return mostly Biblical references.



Quick look didn't find anything, but you have an excellent resource
nearby, UC Davis. Can you contact them, maybe take some photos of the
problem?

I don't know if they are particularly susceptible to fungus, is there
any swelling or cracking near the base of the tree?

Dying carob tree in SF Bay area
 

On Jun 4, 4:21 am, "Rima Neas" wrote:
My big carob tree is looking very sick. I did put in some drip irrigation
around it to feed the surrounding vegetation, so I suspect the roots got
waterlogged. The soil around here is mostly clay. I have removed as much
of the irrigation as I can, but am wondering what to do about the tree. A
great many branches seem to have died out, having only dead leaves on them.
Should I prune all of them back? What can I do to nurse the tree back to
health?

Cheers, Shawn

PS: Any pointers would be most appreciated, my Google searches seem to
return mostly Biblical references.
FWIW
If we are guessing that waterlogging was the culprit and you think it
might be possible to save the tree then consiider walking from the
dripline in with spading fork and plunging it into the soil giving it
a wiggle and moving it about a foot for the next plunge. Waterlogging
kills the roots by denying them oxygen to respire and providing some
aeration may help.

Dying carob tree in SF Bay area
 

"Charles" wrote in message
...

Quick look didn't find anything, but you have an excellent resource
nearby, UC Davis. Can you contact them, maybe take some photos of the
problem?

I don't know if they are particularly susceptible to fungus, is there
any swelling or cracking near the base of the tree?

No swelling or cracking that I can find... I will look into using the UC
for help. Thanks.