Drought recovery is a topic that has come up often, recently in our day-to-day interactions throughout the community. The grass is turning green again and the leaves are starting to grow back, but there are some trees that aren't recovering or are not recovering as quickly. What are some ways, as a homeowner, I can assess the condition of my trees and woody plants?
Of course, there is no blanket, catch all answer that covers everyone's circumstances. We need to understand two main concepts in order to effectively self-evaluate.
First and foremost, there are short-term and long-term effects on your woody plants related to a drought. In the short-term you can expect wilting, leaf scorch, and defoliation which basically means your leaves are turning brown and falling off from lack of water and excessive heat stress. Long-term effects include stunted growth, branch die back, and death of fine feeder roots essential for capturing many of the micronutrients your woody plants need to thrive. Understanding the basic conditions your plants are facing will help tremendously in the role you play in their recovery.
Secondly, and arguably most importantly, is knowing the difference between symptoms and diagnosis. Symptoms are observations you make that indicate something is wrong. Symptoms could include leaves with black spots or having a white powdery film, the bark falling off, thin canopy, branches falling out of the tree, black ants and insects living in and on the plant, etc. A diagnosis is the identification of the nature of and the source of the problem. Taking the observation you make and properly diagnosing the pathogen is critical for timely and effective care of your plants. As expected, a lot of symptoms cross over making a proper diagnosis tricky at times, so it's important to make accurate notes, document any changes in condition, and monitoring the plant after treatment. Plant diseases come in many forms, from viral and bacterial to fungal and parasitic infestations.
Let's not get stuck in the weeds though, let's look at some things you can do as a homeowner to help assess the condition of your trees. When I do a visual inspection, I try to start with an overall view of the tree. Does it look normal, is it growing at an odd angle, is the canopy full, and what is around it? Very simple observations. Next, I start at the top and look more closely at the canopy, or crown. Does it have leaves, are they evenly distributed, are they all the same color, does one side of the tree or any part of the tree have fewer leaves or is a section a different color. Do you see any hangers (hanging, broken branches), are there branches that are dying back, is the canopy obstructed by other trees or structures causing it to favor growth in one area opposed to another? Next, I look at the upper half of the trunk where the main branches part from the trunk. Do you see any obvious holes, previously broken off branches causing gaping wounds, is the bark present and appears solid? Finally, I look at the trunk and base of the tree. Do you see any seeping or stains where water may be accumulating, any holes where insects might be boring into the bark, is the bark intact, is there anything obvious around the base that may be causing problems? Some problems could be dumping your crawfish boil water at the base with all the salts, storing engine parts or oil buckets near the trunk, damage to the base resulting from mowing or hitting it with a tractor bucket, etc. All these things are very easy to do but generate a lot of information that you can use to guide your response.
If you can use Google, that's a good start. If you have a person in your life who can use Google for you, that's even better. The amount of information available on these phones is incredible. A quick search will put so much information in front of you in less than one second. If you can't use the phone or your computer to find the answer, call me and let me help you find a solution. A plan is important but putting a plan into action is the biggest step. We have a team of professionals, a Louisiana licensed arborist and a Louisiana licensed landscaper, that can help you develop a plan and put that plan into action to make life simple. It doesn't have to cost a small fortune; we cater to our community and want to be a resource that can be called whenever the need arises.
Give us a call today at 985-839-2637 or 985-205-4093!
