Bat tree problem - ants?
 

Hi,

I have a bay tree, planted a year or two ago, and it looked healthy until
recently - the leaves have changed from a glossy dark green to a kind of
pale green yellowy colour.

I have noticed a lot of red ants on the earth around the bay tree. I am
guessing that the ants are responsible for the plants deteriorating
health. Could anyone please make any recommendations on dealing with this
problem?

Thanks,

Paul.

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"Paul Taylor" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I have a bay tree, planted a year or two ago, and it looked healthy until
recently - the leaves have changed from a glossy dark green to a kind of
pale green yellowy colour.

I have noticed a lot of red ants on the earth around the bay tree.

Don't think the little red 'uns would cause much harm. More likely that your
soil is pH neutral or towards chalky/lime. Bay likes acid soil so give it a
good dose of ericaceous feed, the sort they sell for heathers,
rhododendrons, camellias (and laurel).
DaveK.

On Mon, 04 Apr 2005 20:19:01 +0100, Paul Taylor
wrote:

I have a bay tree, planted a year or two ago, and it looked healthy until
recently - the leaves have changed from a glossy dark green to a kind of
pale green yellowy colour.

I have noticed a lot of red ants on the earth around the bay tree. I am
guessing that the ants are responsible for the plants deteriorating
health. Could anyone please make any recommendations on dealing with this
problem

No Paul, it is not the ants causing the problem. Look on the underside
of the leaves. You may find tiny brown scales along the veins. If so,
you have scale insects which are sucking the sap from your bay tree.
The ants are feeding on the honeydew which the scale insects produce.
They are not easy to get rid of. The cheapest way is to gently scratch
them off with a finger nail, but that takes time. You cannot use a
systemic insecticide if you are ever going to use leaves for cooking.
Maybe you haven't got any scales and it is something else entirely,
but bay is notorious for getting scale.
Let us know how you get on!


Pam in Bristol

the leaves have changed from a glossy dark green to a kind of
pale green yellowy colour.

Don't think the little red 'uns would cause much harm. More likely that
your soil is pH neutral or towards chalky/lime. Bay likes acid soil so
give it a good dose of ericaceous feed, the sort they sell for heathers,
rhododendrons, camellias (and laurel).
Bay is another laurel.
and SWMBO just reminded me that most of our laurel leaves at the front of
the house have turned yellow with brown edges.
Caused by the copious amount of salt spread on the main road nearby, dutring
the winter.
DaveK.

davek wrote in message
...
the leaves have changed from a glossy dark green to a kind of
pale green yellowy colour.

Don't think the little red 'uns would cause much harm. More likely that
your soil is pH neutral or towards chalky/lime. Bay likes acid soil so
give it a good dose of ericaceous feed, the sort they sell for heathers,
rhododendrons, camellias (and laurel).
Bay is another laurel.
and SWMBO just reminded me that most of our laurel leaves at the front of
the house have turned yellow with brown edges.
Caused by the copious amount of salt spread on the main road nearby,
dutring
the winter.
DaveK.



Hi Dave,

First - and most important - Bay is NOT another Laurel. Your Bay tree will
be Laurus nobilis. Other laurels (often used for hedging) are in the Prunus
tribe, and are very toxic. It is essential that you do not confuse the two
types.

Second - ants can undermine a root system. So can frost and wind. Is your
tree still firmly planted? If that doesn't seem to be the problem, scratch
away a little of the bark on the stem and see if the exposed layer is still
green. If it is, your plant is still alive and has a chance. Look for
insect pests. Are any of the leaves distorted? Distorted leaves could mean
Bay Sucker. However, they don't usually turn the leaves yellow. Scale
insects could be a problem. These appear on the underside of leaves and on
stem material. They are difficult to get rid of, esp. on an edible plant.
You may have to spray, then not use the leaves for cooking this year. Have
a word with your local GC and see if they've got a fairly benign spray.

If you've had the near-drought conditions many of us have had, give it
plenty of water and a light feed. It's usually unwise to feed a sick plant,
but a weaker-than-usual feed might just help it to green up, or start
replacing those yellowy leaves.

Spider

In article ,
"Spider" writes:
|
| Second - ants can undermine a root system. So can frost and wind. Is your
| tree still firmly planted? ...

I don't think that there are any ants in the UK that can undermine
an established tree or medium shrub. This would be the last thing
that I would look for - your other scenarios are MUCH more likely.

A more likely cause is root aphids or similar, which the ants are
following (for the honeydew). If so, drenching the soil with a
suitable insecticide might solve the problem, but NOT by killing
the harmless ants.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 7/4/05 14:48, in article , "Nick
Maclaren" wrote:


In article ,
"Spider" writes:
|
| Second - ants can undermine a root system. So can frost and wind. Is your
| tree still firmly planted? ...

I don't think that there are any ants in the UK that can undermine
an established tree or medium shrub. This would be the last thing
that I would look for - your other scenarios are MUCH more likely.
snip
FWQW, moles can kill shrubs by burrowing beneath them and leaving the roots
dangling in thin air, so it's worth looking around for any mole hills.
--

Sacha
(remove the weeds for email)

On Mon, 04 Apr 2005 20:19:01 +0100, Paul Taylor wrote:

Thanks for the replies. I have checked the leaves for scale as instructed
but there is no evidence of that. So maybe the answer is a bit of a feed.
I'll also keep in mind the possibility of root aphids.

Thanks again,

Paul.

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