Colorado Blue Spruce - Red/Brown Needles - How to fix it?

[patrob]

I would really appreciate some help regarding our Colorado Blue Spruce :msp_sad:

We have planted 5 of them 2 years ago (they looked great at the time) in our backyard & one of them in particular is not doing so well. It has red/brown needles on many branches (looks like the branches are dying/dry?) & not growing very well vs. the others :msp_crying:. It's also pretty thin throughout especially the top. You can see some growth on some of the tips but not like the others.

I was reading somewhere about "Rhizosphaera needle cast" but not sure if this is what we are dealing with or how to fix it?

I attached some pics for reference.

Thanks a lot in advance :msp_smile:

 

[patrob]

Anyone have any experience with a Colorado Blue Spruce?

Thank you,

 

[jamied]

Anyone have any experience with a Colorado Blue Spruce?

Thank you,

Looks sickly, maybe dying.

Need more info. How often is it watered, what has your weather been like. How long has the tree been there? Is it planted too deep?

Are you sure it is a CB Spruce? The one next to it looks more like one. At least from what I can see on my ipod.


Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[patrob]

Looks sickly, maybe dying.

Need more info. How often is it watered, what has your weather been like. How long has the tree been there? Is it planted too deep?

Are you sure it is a CB Spruce? The one next to it looks more like one. At least from what I can see on my ipod.


Jamie
Neenah, WI

Thanks for the response.

It's watered quite often in the summer since we like our grass green :msp_biggrin:
It was planted 2 years ago but the tree was already pretty large when we got it, around 15 ft. or so.
We were told it is a Colorado Blue Spruce just not as "blue" as some can be.
We started noticing last year that it was not doing so well but I figured that it was due to being replanted a year before & I figured it will just need some time. I guess we are running out of time since it's looking worse & worse :msp_unsure:
It was planted by the company who sold it to us & they sell all kinds of trees so I hope they knew how deep to plant it...the others are doing well so I guess they are planted ok.

Here is a pic of how it looked when we got it 2 years ago. It was def. more "green" than it is now.

 

[jamied]

Thanks for the response.

It's watered quite often in the summer since we like our grass green :msp_biggrin:
It was planted 2 years ago but the tree was already pretty large when we got it, around 15 ft. or so.
We were told it is a Colorado Blue Spruce just not as "blue" as some can be.
We started noticing last year that it was not doing so well but I figured that it was due to being replanted a year before & I figured it will just need some time. I guess we are running out of time since it's looking worse & worse :msp_unsure:
It was planted by the company who sold it to us & they sell all kinds of trees so I hope they knew how deep to plant it...the others are doing well so I guess they are planted ok.

Here is a pic of how it looked when we got it 2 years ago. It was def. more "green" than it is now.

Is that mulch piled against the trunk? It looks like it's 6 inches high.



Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[Urban Forester]

Do you have a lawn service that fertilizes and sprays for weeds? If so, check with them to see if they used Imprelis herbicide. I'm running 6 to 8 consultations a day on trees with new growth affected by that herbicide, and that "damage" is what I've been seeing on spruce.

 

[patrob]

Is that mulch piled against the trunk? It looks like it's 6 inches high.



Jamie
Neenah, WI

Part of the root ball is above the ground, mulch is maybe 2" or less now.

 

[patrob]

Do you have a lawn service that fertilizes and sprays for weeds? If so, check with them to see if they used Imprelis herbicide. I'm running 6 to 8 consultations a day on trees with new growth affected by that herbicide, and that "damage" is what I've been seeing on spruce.

No. We fertilize ourselves & we use Scotts Turf Builder only.
Scotts Miracle-Gro

We had used Blood Meal (?) recommended by the nursery when we planted it.
Few months ago we added some Miracle Grow spikes.

 

[Loraxguy]

Blue spruce

I have to ask but were these trees balled and Burlap? If they are was the twing taken off around the base of the trees?

One of the big issues with blue spruce is cystpora canker -I've seen landscapers move infected blue spruce into the landscape---Needles turn like was shown in one of photo's.

 

[patrob]

I have to ask but were these trees balled and Burlap? If they are was the twing taken off around the base of the trees?

One of the big issues with blue spruce is cystpora canker -I've seen landscapers move infected blue spruce into the landscape---Needles turn like was shown in one of photo's.

Not sure what "twing" is?

Yes the trees were in some sort of wire "mesh" with burlap & they were planted that way.

 

[patrob]

Do you have a lawn service that fertilizes and sprays for weeds? If so, check with them to see if they used Imprelis herbicide. I'm running 6 to 8 consultations a day on trees with new growth affected by that herbicide, and that "damage" is what I've been seeing on spruce.

Sorry but looks like my answer was not posted for some reason?
EDIT: Looks like it was posted after all

We fertilize ourselves (nothing for weeds) we only use Scotts Turf Builder 30 0 3. We have used Blood Meal for the trees in the past recommended by the nursery. We also added a few Miracle Grow spikes beginning of spring.

 

[jamied]

Part of the root ball is above the ground, mulch is maybe 2" or less now.

Was it more before and for how long?


---
- Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[jamied]

Not sure what "twing" is?

Yes the trees were in some sort of wire "mesh" with burlap & they were planted that way.

I think he means twine.

Was all of the burlap and twine fully removed at the time of planting?


---
- Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[jamied]

Thanks for the response.

It's watered quite often in the summer since we like our grass green :msp_biggrin:
It was planted 2 years ago but the tree was already pretty large when we got it, around 15 ft. or so.
We were told it is a Colorado Blue Spruce just not as "blue" as some can be.
We started noticing last year that it was not doing so well but I figured that it was due to being replanted a year before & I figured it will just need some time. I guess we are running out of time since it's looking worse & worse :msp_unsure:
It was planted by the company who sold it to us & they sell all kinds of trees so I hope they knew how deep to plant it...the others are doing well so I guess they are planted ok.

Here is a pic of how it looked when we got it 2 years ago. It was def. more "green" than it is now.

How often is quite often?

Trees should only be watered once the top inch or so of soil starts to dry.

You may have overwatered it.


---
- Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[patrob]

Was it more before and for how long?

It wasn't much more before.

I think he means twine.

Was all of the burlap and twine fully removed at the time of planting?

Nothing was removed. The tree company planted them that way.

 

[patrob]

How often is quite often?

Trees should only be watered once the top inch or so of soil starts to dry.

You may have overwatered it.


---
- Jamie
Neenah, WI

We water the grass with the sprinkler, not the trees directly. And it is around ever 3-4 days if really dry.
And it's not more than 1 inch of water. There is no way we could have over watered it. All the other trees are pretty healthy & growing nicely.

 

[jamied]

Nothing was removed. The tree company planted them that way.

It's really best to remove and that could be causing a problem. Some burlap will rot over time some won't. Hard to know if this is an / the issue without digging.



---
- Jamie
Neenah, WI

 

[patrob]

It's really best to remove and that could be causing a problem. Some burlap will rot over time some won't. Hard to know if this is an / the issue without digging.

From what we can see from the top, the burlap is pretty much gone. The digging is pretty much out of the question, we have no access to the backyard with machines & these trees are pretty heavy.

 

[jamied]

We water the grass with the sprinkler, not the trees directly. And it is around ever 3-4 days if really dry.
And it's not more than 1 inch of water. There is no way we could have over watered it. All the other trees are pretty healthy & growing nicely.

The signs of over watering and under watering are unfortunately virtually identical. How the other more establish trees respond to water isn't a good indication of proper watering for a younger tree. The younger tree with less roots will be far less tolerant of over watering than a older tree with a larger root system. If those other trees are a different variety, they may be more tolerant as well.

I've looked at the photos more closely now that I am on my computer and it looks a bit worse than I thought, I'd give it 50/50 odds of making it at best.

What kind of soil do you have? If it is heavy clay, it is much easier to end up over watering, as water can sit in the clay hole around the tree like a bucket of water. If it is sandy, it is more likely that it was under watered.

Also, Blue Spruce don't do all that well in general in clay soils, Black Hills Spruce do better. There are of course some that get established and do quite well in clay, it's just more difficult.

It's also possible it has nothing to do with watering, it could have been poorly planted and there could be burlap your not seeing under ground.

If the mulch wasn't ever much more than 2" deep then it appears that it was either planted above ground level or there was too much soil filled in around the trunk at planting. Being planted higher usually isn't a problem, but extra soil or mulch is.

Did the tree company give any kind of guarantee?

There likely isn't a lot that can be done other than to check it isn't buried too deep and to ensure you water properly. Those fertilizer spikes don't do much of anything.

You could have a ISA certified arborist come out and look at it, he might see something in person that I'm not seeing. I don't know how much you paid for the tree, but at it's fairly young age, it's probably not worth putting a lot of money into professional services from an arborist.

If you want to take some photos of the base of the tree at ground level, pull back the mulch a bit and get some some good photos, I'll take a look and get tell you if it looks planted properly.

If it further declines or fails to rally by later next spring, I would plan on replacing it.

 

[patrob]

Thanks Jamie, I will try to take some pics tomorrow :msp_smile:

They gave me guarantee for 1 year I think. I left a message for them but am still waiting for a response...we'll see what they tell me.