As trained arborists, the Reeves team are experienced in identifying and dealing with issues around tree health and death. We advise working with a professional if you have an unwell or dead tree. Here, we look at some of the most important facts about tree health to help you understand what can happen to trees to compromise them and what can be done to avoid tree death.
Veteran & Ancient Trees Will Need More Care
As a general rule, the older a tree is, the more likely it is to need health care. Tree surgery is the most well known form of tree maintenance, but when it comes to the health of veteran trees there are many ways to care for those, from land management to bracing.
Trees can become sick or die at any age or stage of life, so while the below information is particularly relevant for older trees, it does apply to all trees.
Tree Sickness
Tree diseases come in many types. Some of them affect only certain types of trees, others affect all trees of every size and age. Being aware of and able to identify the early signs of a disease can go a long way to remedying the situation.
If you spot any of the following signs of tree sickness, we recommend getting in touch with an arborist who can confirm it and recommend a solution:
- Bacterial and viral infections – Insect infestation, weather damage or simply naturally occuring bacteria can cause infections and the decline of trees. Signs of these issues include smaller than usual leaves, yellowing of leaves and dark and sticky oozes from cracks in trunks.
- Fungal decay – Not all fungi harm trees but some forms, namely brown and white rot, cause decay that damages trees. Watch out for brown and cracked ‘brick-like form’ in the wood or pale spongy masses as these are signs of fungal decay.
Staying aware of what can affect your trees is invaluable. There are some diseases that affect specific types of trees and cause death, such as:
- Ash dieback – ‘The disease causes stem lesions, leaf loss and crown dieback in affected trees and can lead to tree death.’ This is a sickness that is one the rise and should be carefully monitored.
- Red band needle blight – This disease often affects older pine trees and causes yellowing of the needles with red patches in bands (hence the given name). It can be treated if caught early, though in the UK there is a focus on resistant species over cures.
- Sudden oak death – This has caused the death of many trees in the US and some in the UK. Symptoms include bleeding of tree trunks and dieback of foliage.
There are lots of types of trees in the UK and many diseases that affect those specific species. You can find more about these and the visual signs on Trees.org.uk.
Dead & Dying Trees
There are two main ways in which a tree can come to the end of its life. One is due to disease and the other is old age. Management of these two stages, separately and when simultaneous, should be careful and considered. However, in some cases it will be too late for a tree. With the change in climate around the world, and the UK specifically, the spread of some diseases and environmental shifts that cause tree death are changing.
With the above checklist you can identify signs of a sick tree. But what about the more worrying signs of a dying or dead tree? Trees can be in decline for years before finally dying, so if you aren’t staying aware of the health of your trees, you might miss the opportunity to save them.
Signs of a dying tree include:
- Lack of leaves or reduction in number of leaves (on all or part of the tree)
- Sickness and diseases taking over (and left untreated)
- Falling bark
- Dying limbs/branches
- Trunk becoming soft
If your tree is already dead but you aren’t sure how it happened, you can call in an expert to examine the tree and stop it happening again with another tree. You may also find some of the Royal Horticultural Society’s advice useful.
Veteran Tree Maintenance
It’s especially important to watch out for tree sickness and signs of dying trees with veteran and ancient trees. Older trees are more susceptible to damage and disease and they may not be able to come back from a decline as easily as a younger tree.
Vetern tree health care can be divided into three main practices:
- Routine tree maintenance – Checks for sickness and diseases or damage that could lead to infections
- Management of the land surrounding veteran trees – To ensure there is healthy soil, no underground damage and acceptable competition with nearby plants/trees (if any).
- Maintenance to prevent structural integrity – Pruning of branches, pollarding, root maintenance, all the ways in which a tree can be helped so that it doesn’t fall during a storm, break or cause damage to its surroundings.
Removal of a tree that is dying is certainly the last recourse, and the removal of dead trees can be a necessity if the ground has other uses. The safe removal of a dead or dying tree should only be carried out by experts, to ensure it is done properly, for the sake of environmental damage, and to ensure the space can be used safely for new tree planting or another use.
