Advice on Tulip Poplar

[amyprice]

I have a very tall Tulip Poplar tree close to my house (~20 ft from my front door). The bark on one side looks different than the bark on the rest of the tree, and I'm wondering if it has the beginning of some type of disease. I included 3 photos. The first two photos show the area I am referring to that may or may not be diseased (parts of the bark are falling off). The third photo shows the other side of the tree that appears completely healthy (no bark is falling off).

The tree is about 90-100 ft tall. I am concerned about its health since it is next to my house. None of its limbs are hanging over my house, however every year there are a few small to medium sized dead branches that fall to the ground. I would prefer to leave the tree alone if it is healthy.

 

[GusGus2020]

Yellow-poplar (tulip poplar) commonly has any number of small branches die each year. I personally wouldn’t be too worried unless you see significant thinning of the crown (leaves/branches dying), or fungal fruiting bodies (mushrooms) growing around the base of the tree or on the tree itself, indicating a major health problem. Can you post a picture of the top of the tree?

I would recommend getting a local tree care professional out if you are still worried about it, or contact your local agriculture/forestry extension for further advice.

 

[Raintree]

Poke around at the soil line, see if the bark is loose and punky. If not you are good, if so you may have a dead area. Considering the circumference of the stump and tulip poplar being rot resistant I wouldn't be overly alarmed.

 

[ElevatorGuy]

I would absolutely remove it. Poplar is a junk tree. I had 5 of that size or even a little bigger dropped within the first month at my new place.