Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks to be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

Bob

"Bob" wrote in message
link.net...
Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks to be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

The disease is spread by beetles and root grafts, not worms. If a tree is
infected, it will die in almost all cases. If you have a tree that has it,
you need to remove the tree as quickly as possible to prevent infection of
nearby trees. It is possible to inoculate trees near infected trees with
some level of success. If this is not done, trees that share root areas
will eventually become infected also. All oaks in the red oak family (which
Live Oaks reside) are susceptible. If you do have to remove an infected
tree, I suggest planting an elm in its place.

Because of this problem, I have planted only one Live Oak at my new
residence. For most shade trees, I have gone with elm trees and Chinese
Pistache. Cedar Elm is a Texas native and grows very well. Lacebark Elm is
an Asian variety and does very well here also. Elms are susceptible to
dutch elm disease (which is similar in nature to oak wilt), however dutch
elm disease is not a problem in most areas of Texas and the two varieties I
mentioned have a good resistance to the disease.

"RoyDMercer" wrote in message
...
"Bob" wrote in message
link.net...
Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to
be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks to
be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will
it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

The disease is spread by beetles and root grafts, not worms. If a tree is
infected, it will die in almost all cases. If you have a tree that has
it,
you need to remove the tree as quickly as possible to prevent infection of
nearby trees. It is possible to inoculate trees near infected trees with
some level of success. If this is not done, trees that share root areas
will eventually become infected also. All oaks in the red oak family
(which
Live Oaks reside) are susceptible. If you do have to remove an infected
tree, I suggest planting an elm in its place.

Because of this problem, I have planted only one Live Oak at my new
residence. For most shade trees, I have gone with elm trees and Chinese
Pistache. Cedar Elm is a Texas native and grows very well. Lacebark Elm
is
an Asian variety and does very well here also. Elms are susceptible to
dutch elm disease (which is similar in nature to oak wilt), however dutch
elm disease is not a problem in most areas of Texas and the two varieties
I
mentioned have a good resistance to the disease.

Thanks for the answer, but I was asking if this was oak wilt or a result of
the worm infestation. I know the worms don't spread it.

Glad you planted different trees. My huge oaks are natural and part of
the reason we chose this lot.

"Bob" wrote in message
ink.net...

"RoyDMercer" wrote in message
...
"Bob" wrote in message
link.net...
Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to
be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks
to
be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will
it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

The disease is spread by beetles and root grafts, not worms. If a tree
is
infected, it will die in almost all cases. If you have a tree that has
it,
you need to remove the tree as quickly as possible to prevent infection
of
nearby trees. It is possible to inoculate trees near infected trees
with
some level of success. If this is not done, trees that share root areas
will eventually become infected also. All oaks in the red oak family
(which
Live Oaks reside) are susceptible. If you do have to remove an
infected
tree, I suggest planting an elm in its place.

Because of this problem, I have planted only one Live Oak at my new
residence. For most shade trees, I have gone with elm trees and Chinese
Pistache. Cedar Elm is a Texas native and grows very well. Lacebark
Elm
is
an Asian variety and does very well here also. Elms are susceptible to
dutch elm disease (which is similar in nature to oak wilt), however
dutch
elm disease is not a problem in most areas of Texas and the two
varieties
I
mentioned have a good resistance to the disease.

Thanks for the answer, but I was asking if this was oak wilt or a result
of
the worm infestation. I know the worms don't spread it.

Glad you planted different trees. My huge oaks are natural and part of
the reason we chose this lot.



It could be oak wilt, but your description isn't much to base a diagnosis
on. I doubt it's the worms, though.

We also bought because of the large oaks and have had several die. Prior to
buying, we had an arborist (formerly posting here as Treedoc) come out to
check the trees to give an opinion on whether there was oak wilt. He gave a
vague answer, and basically said trees don't live forever, plant some other
trees in case these croak.

I watched for all the 'classic' signs - patterns on leaves etc, but never
saw them as trees died. One symptom that I have seen consistently is
peeling bark, which Brown looked right at and declared not oak wilt.

Drop the money on Alamo. If you catch it early, you can save the tree for
several years. If you get there first, the tree will be safe for several
years, but probably needs 'booster shots' down the road. If the tree
already has dead branches, don't waste your money.

However, the best advice is: trees don't live forever, plant some other
trees in case these croak.

"grubber" wrote in message
...

It could be oak wilt, but your description isn't much to base a diagnosis
on. I doubt it's the worms, though.

We also bought because of the large oaks and have had several die. Prior
to
buying, we had an arborist (formerly posting here as Treedoc) come out to
check the trees to give an opinion on whether there was oak wilt. He gave
a
vague answer, and basically said trees don't live forever, plant some
other
trees in case these croak.

I watched for all the 'classic' signs - patterns on leaves etc, but never
saw them as trees died. One symptom that I have seen consistently is
peeling bark, which Brown looked right at and declared not oak wilt.

Drop the money on Alamo. If you catch it early, you can save the tree for
several years. If you get there first, the tree will be safe for several
years, but probably needs 'booster shots' down the road. If the tree
already has dead branches, don't waste your money.

However, the best advice is: trees don't live forever, plant some other
trees in case these croak.

It doesn't sound like he's much of an arborist if that's all he did and
that's all the advice he had to give. There are tests which can be run to
tell if you have oak wilt. If you do have it, it is important to catch the
problem early on to save the tree if possible or at the least remove it so
adjacent trees will not be infected. It sounds like he didn't even give you
advice as to which trees to replant with.

I would not pay someone to tell me things I already know. He should have
given you a difinitive answer. If he can't, I would find someone else who
can.

On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 10:31:34 GMT, "Bob"
wrote:

Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks to be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

Bob


As someone said, you really haven't given much to go on. It is
entirely possible that the browning you see is the catkins (flowers)
that are finishing their cycle and falling off the trees. When live
oaks are in this period of dropping/adding leaves and also flowering
at the same time, they sometimes look dead when they aren't. Add the
leaf-rollers, which are quite heavy this year, and it may seem you
have no live leaves when if fact they are just being eaten as fast as
they come out.

try this link to get up to speed on the disease:
http://plantpathology.tamu.edu/Texlab/oakwilt.html

A somewhat conclusive test is possible that would help to diagnose for
wilt, but it is not 100% reliable. In live oaks, the disease is not
as quick to kill a tree and you may do well to wait a couple of more
weeks to see if new leaves are growing and if they are symptomatic.
If these are particularly nice trees, you may consider time is of the
essence, and an immediate consultaion from a consulting arborist could
assuage your fears. As my sig suggests, I am a professional arborist,
but if you want an impartial consultation I suggest you call Don
Gardner (263-2586), who will give you good info and advice but will
not try to sell you the work he recommends.

Of course, I am happy to offer a consultation and to help you if your
trees have a problem. Feel free to cal or email.

Sincerely,
Keith Babberney
ISA Certified Arborist #TX-0236
512-924-1245
arborworks at austintx dot com
For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

Thanks to all for the good advice


"Babberney" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 27 Apr 2004 10:31:34 GMT, "Bob"
wrote:

Pretty much widespread throughout Georgetown, Live Oak trees appear to be
browning - first one limb and then others until the whole tree looks to
be
dead. I have never seen anything like this before.

Is this problem a result of all the worms we had this spring, and will it
kill the trees or will they coe back?

Bob


As someone said, you really haven't given much to go on. It is
entirely possible that the browning you see is the catkins (flowers)
that are finishing their cycle and falling off the trees. When live
oaks are in this period of dropping/adding leaves and also flowering
at the same time, they sometimes look dead when they aren't. Add the
leaf-rollers, which are quite heavy this year, and it may seem you
have no live leaves when if fact they are just being eaten as fast as
they come out.

try this link to get up to speed on the disease:
http://plantpathology.tamu.edu/Texlab/oakwilt.html

A somewhat conclusive test is possible that would help to diagnose for
wilt, but it is not 100% reliable. In live oaks, the disease is not
as quick to kill a tree and you may do well to wait a couple of more
weeks to see if new leaves are growing and if they are symptomatic.
If these are particularly nice trees, you may consider time is of the
essence, and an immediate consultaion from a consulting arborist could
assuage your fears. As my sig suggests, I am a professional arborist,
but if you want an impartial consultation I suggest you call Don
Gardner (263-2586), who will give you good info and advice but will
not try to sell you the work he recommends.

Of course, I am happy to offer a consultation and to help you if your
trees have a problem. Feel free to cal or email.

Sincerely,
Keith Babberney
ISA Certified Arborist #TX-0236
512-924-1245
arborworks at austintx dot com
For more info about the International Society of Arboriculture, please
visit http://www.isa-arbor.com/home.asp.
For consumer info about tree care, visit http://www.treesaregood.com/

"Babberney" wrote

If these are particularly nice trees, you may consider time is of the
essence, and an immediate consultaion from a consulting arborist could

Your County Extension Agent can help, too, and they don't charge as much.
Not nearly the expertise of a professional arborist, but still a lot more
than most.