Weird Tree Growth

[ThereWillBeAnts]

Had this growth show up this year, have seen it in other parts of my neighborhood but not sure what it is or if I should be concerned. Have had several dead limbs that I just trimmed off, not huge but not small either. The leaves of the growth are different than the normal tree leaves. Anyone know what's up? Really don't want to lose this tree.

 

[Raintree]

Epicormic Sprouting​

 

[ThereWillBeAnts]

Epicormic Sprouting​

Does that mean it's dying? What kind of tree is it anyway?

 

[Raintree]

I'm guessing it's a green ash and the suckering is a symptom of EAB. Yes it's dying.

 

[mikewhite85]

Look for small D shaped holes. Those are the exit wounds from the borers.

It looks like the upper canopy is thinning while there is a lot of epicormic growth in the lower canopy, which is a sign of stress, often due to excessive loss of foliage in other parts of the tree. The borers chew on the the vascular tissue of the tree and cut off circulation throughout. Generally, the upper extremities are first to die off.

 

[ATH]

I'm guessing it's a green ash and the suckering is a symptom of EAB. Yes it's dying.

That was my thought

 

[ThereWillBeAnts]

If it is EAB, can it be saved? What's the timeline like?

 

[Big_Eddy]

Not now - the damage is done. Next year the top will be completely dead and the woodpeckers will be stripping the bark from it. 2 years from now it will be raining dead branches. Fortunately it looks like you can just drop it without worrying about wires or houses or other.

 

[mikewhite85]

It's probably on its way out. But you could use this product annually to try and maintain it. https://www.amazon.com/Advanced-701...keywords=mauget+imicide&qid=1625617621&sr=8-8

90% of what we do is remove dead/dying ash trees due to EAB unfortunately.

You're probably best off just taking it out and replacing it with something else

 

[ThereWillBeAnts]

Just got some of that, do I need to apply it anywhere other than around the base of the trunk?

Also with the sprouts, would you trim those or just let them be?

 

[ATH]

Just got some of that, do I need to apply it anywhere other than around the base of the trunk?

Also with the sprouts, would you trim those or just let them be?

Right around the trunk...dig a little moat - maybe 2" wide and deep so it doesn't run off.

I wouldn't prune the branches for 2 reasons:
1) They are giving the tree "food" which it desperately needs - that is why they sprouted up.
2) Give it a couple years to see if you have saved it then invest in pruning.

If you want to really try to hit EAB hard, you might have somebody treat it with tree-age in addition to using imidacloprid. That will cost quite a bit more, but it lasts 2-3 years and acts differently than imidacloprid, so you might do both for the first treatment then move to imidacloprid every year on your own. For the do it yourself: There are generic formulations of more concentrated imidacloprid that will be quite a bit cheaper than the Bayer product linked. Look for imidacloprid 2F or 72WSP (those are formulations, not name brands...)