Help treating Pin Oaks

[jmanikowski]

Hello all,

I recently moved into a new home that has several mature pin oaks in the front yard. The largest of these has recently died from bacterial leaf scorch, according to a local tree service company. I think that it's also possible the tree may have had a fungal infection because the bark started falling off, exposing brown, dusty spores underneath. Anyway, I'm afraid that two other nearby oaks may also be infected with whatever the dead tree had, though neither are exhibiting signs of stress, except for some dead limbs that may have been neglected by the previous owner and some suckers sprouting from the trunk. So here are my questions...

1. When is the best time to prune off the sucker/epicormic branches, and is there anything I need to be careful of?

2a. Should anything besides fertilization and pruning be done to try to extend the life of the remaining 2 pin oaks?

2b. Would anyone recommend paying for the Arborbalance/Cambistat injection treatment that is available through Sav-A-Tree?

3. In general, can the same fertilization be used on all trees (silver maples, walnuts, apple, etc) on my property and could I save money by doing this myself?

4. Could anyone recommend an inexpensive tree removal property in southeastern, PA - specifically Montgomery county.

Thank you all for your input.

 

[ChrisWNY]

1. When is the best time to prune off the sucker/epicormic branches, and is there anything I need to be careful of?

Suckers can be pruned at any time, I cut them off my River Birch constantly throughout the Spring and Summer, never had a problem. I have other trees that produce plenty of suckers, puts my pruning shears to good use on a regular basis.

2a. Should anything besides fertilization and pruning be done to try to extend the life of the remaining 2 pin oaks?

Contact your county extension office, your local horticulturist is paid by your tax dollars so make use of him/her. They are often willing to come out to your property to diagnose tree disease and will recommend appropriate actions to take. Pin Oaks are finicky about soil chemistry, they like acidic soil and will suffer chlorosis among other issues if the chemistry just ain't right. Personally I loathe Pin Oaks, I caught a seedling Pin Oak growing on my lot earlier this Spring and made a B-line for it with the riding mower, they don't do too well in my neutral-pH, poorly-draining soil, they often look hideous if allowed to grow beyond a few years, so I put them out of their misery if I see them sprouting on my lot - my neighbor just 2 houses up the road from me has an old, scraggly ugly-as-sin Pin Oak in his yard, so occasionally some acorns make their way onto my property and sprout the next year.

2b. Would anyone recommend paying for the Arborbalance/Cambistat injection treatment that is available through Sav-A-Tree?

How big are these Pin Oak trees? Are they prized/of sentimental value? The answer depends on a lot of variables. Photos would be a huge help, the arborists (aka experts) who frequent this forum will surely ask you for photos.

3. In general, can the same fertilization be used on all trees (silver maples, walnuts, apple, etc) on my property and could I save money by doing this myself?

Don't waste your hard-earned dough fertilizing Silver Maples, if there's a hell and it iced over, a Silver Maple could still probably grow and thrive there. Seriously, they grow just about anywhere, they'll also smash your roof and drop large limbs on your wife, your prized car, and your kids during wind, snow and ice storms. SE PA is part of their infinitely-expansive native territory. Arborists and other tree experts will tell you that fertilizing trees is often a futile effort, but it hasn't stopped me in the past - I throw down some 15-15-15 in the LATE FALL after LEAF DROP to give all my young trees a boost the following Spring, I must say it works great, my trees are very eager to shoot all sorts of new branches and growth every Spring and I truly believe I can blame the fertilizer as my soil and drainage outright sucks so I give my soil ZERO credit. I do agree with the arborists that Mulch is a tree's best friend, use LIBERAL amounts of it around your trees, it will improve your soil conditions, reduce compaction, add organic matter as it breaks down, and it'll do your taxes (itemizations, capital gains, the whole 9) for you every year before the infamous April deadline.

4. Could anyone recommend an inexpensive tree removal property in southeastern, PA - specifically Montgomery county.

Will let an arborist dude answer that one for you, they love to bust out their Stihl chainsaws and go to town on anything that needs a cuttin'.

 

[jmanikowski]

ChrisWNY,
Thank you very much for the prompt responses. Attached are some photos of the worse off Pin Oak that I'm looking to get treatment advice for. I don't know how clear the photos are, but they generally show the epicormic branches coming from the trunk of tree and about 6-8 completely dead limbs, all of which are on the lower level of the tree.

The trees are approximately 65-75 tall. They don't really have any sentimental value, but one of the reasons we bought this house was because of the maturity of the trees. We'd rather try to save what's here, than plant new trees, since we probably won't be in this house long enough to fully enjoy them.

Once again, thank you for your advice thus far.

 

[ChrisWNY]

Those are some large Pin Oaks, definitely get an arborist or horticulturalist out there to do some further examination. If the trees are treatable, it's probably a no-brainer to go that route to try and keep the trees alive and vigorous. Has their decline (in terms of the lower dead branches) been recent or ongoing since you moved into your house? If those branches are truly dead, they should probably be removed by a qualified/certified arborist.

Hiring an arborist or tree service company to cut down oaks that large will cost an arm and a leg. You may be able to off-set the cost by selling the wood, however, as Pin Oak wood is marketed as Red Oak wood (pin and red oaks are very similar), and may be quite valuable. It's a bummer when trees that large and magnificent start to decline, there are so many reasons and causes. Anything from disease to soil compaction could cause those old Pin Oaks to fade.

 

[RacerX]

Not sure why Chris loathes pin oaks since IMO when maintained they're nice trees.

From the photo's it's hard to tell if the tree has any long term viability so a professional inspection and opinion is a good option.

 

[jmanikowski]

@ChrisWNY
The bare branches in the pictures have not produced any leaves this season. I've only been at this house since April, thus I'm not sure of the progression of their decline. As far as this season is concerned, I have not noticed any significant browning of leaves or an excessive amount of leaves dropping to the ground.

 

[Rudedog]

ChrisWNY,
Thank you very much for the prompt responses. Attached are some photos of the worse off Pin Oak that I'm looking to get treatment advice for. I don't know how clear the photos are, but they generally show the epicormic branches coming from the trunk of tree and about 6-8 completely dead limbs, all of which are on the lower level of the tree.

The trees are approximately 65-75 tall. They don't really have any sentimental value, but one of the reasons we bought this house was because of the maturity of the trees. We'd rather try to save what's here, than plant new trees, since we probably won't be in this house long enough to fully enjoy them.

Once again, thank you for your advice thus far.

My Mom and Dad the same problem with a somewhat smaller Pin Oak. The first 20% of the branches are denuded of leaves. My Mom is more interested in me removing the tree. I had suggested as a non expert that we remove the affected branches and give some time and see what happens. I don't know that this would accomplish much but I didn't see the reason to rush.

 

[ChrisWNY]

I'd look into having those lower dead branches pruned off professionally, it's dangerous work considering the size of the tree and the branches. Dead branches eventually become dangerous because they will crack and fall off (could cause property damage or physical harm) in storms, especially snow or ice storms. Get it taken care of during the Fall if possible. Dead limbs can also tear out bark and living tissue from the trunk when they fall, which could severely injure the rest of the tree or kill it. I don't think fees will be terrible for just branches, but I haven't had to hire a tree service in many years so I'm not current on pricing, the arborists here should have knowledge though.

Not sure why Chris loathes pin oaks since IMO when maintained they're nice trees.

...

Yeah, they just don't do well in my area, that's why I've developed quite a disliking of them. I mean, check out jmanikowski's pin oaks, they're causing him problems in SE PA, that certainly doesn't help change my opinion about them. I love Oak trees in general, just not Pin Oaks. They are too finicky in terms of their soil preference and I've seen many around my area suffer from chlorosis among other problems. Any well-maintained tree should look nice, there are exceptions of course.