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Tree Issue

AgronAlum

AgronAlum

Well-Known Member
Jul 12, 2014
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We’ve got a crabapple in the front yard that is losing its bark on the main portions of the trunk and branches. Any suggestions?

Earl May basically said if there are holes, they can do something and if there isn’t, it’s probably a fungus and they cannot. The dude didn’t really look at the pictures I showed him though.

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AgronAlum said:
We’ve got a crabapple in the front yard that is losing its bark on the main portions of the trunk and branches. Any suggestions?

Earl May basically said if there are holes, they can do something and if there isn’t, it’s probably a fungus and they cannot. The dude didn’t really look at the pictures I showed him though.

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I would plan on new trees, if there is a continuous section of bark (around the circumference) the tree will die in a year or two. You will likely get a bunch of shoots from around the base.
 
I'm not a big fan of crab apple trees to begin with. They look really nice when they bloom, but after that they are a mess to deal with with all the birds, insects, small animals, etc that come for the small fruit, and the mess on the ground when they fall off the tree. We had one growing up on our farm. Get rid of it.
 
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Probably infected with a terminal fungus. Those things don't live forever. Seems like I read somewhere once that if it's one that was originally grafted to the roots of an apple tree, about 30 years is the life expectancy.
 
discydisc said:
I would plan on new trees, if there is a continuous section of bark (around the circumference) the tree will die in a year or two. You will likely get a bunch of shoots from around the base.
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We cut out two of these because of the fungus, which is also hell on the grass nearby.
 
cycloner29 said:
I'm not a big fan of crab apple trees to begin with. They look really nice when they bloom, but after that they are a mess to deal with with all the birds, insects, small animals, etc that come for the small fruit, and the mess on the ground when they fall off the tree. We had one growing up on our farm. Get rid of it.
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Funny, I like them because of the birds etc. Also because they are smaller and you can put them relatively close to the house. To each their own!
 
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CascadeClone said:
Funny, I like them because of the birds etc. Also because they are smaller and you can put them relatively close to the house. To each their own!
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We have a neighbor with one and she has an open compost pile right next to our yard. The crab apples and the compost pile are a buffet to the critters and we seem to get the egg shells, rinds, and other decaying matter in our yard along with the poo. Hence the rant about them. She did move her compost pile to the other side of the yard so thankfully we don't get the stuff anymore. Putting a privacy fence also helped with this issue.
 
My agronomist said if bare wood under where the bark has slipped off and an old tree, it is dying. From the pictures, even if it is a fungus or insects I think it is too late for that old of a tree to turn things around.
 
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I have a silver maple in my backyard that I ******* hate. If anyone needs firewood feel free to come take it down. Just don't drop it on my house.
 
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I'm no expert, but that looks exactly like frost cracks from harsh winter, based on what a tree guy told me happened to my red maple in the front of my house. I had the same thing happen to it. It should repair itself and be OK as long as nothing gets into it.
 
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Did it have any black die back last summer? Fire blight took out a lot of apple and pear trees in iowa last year.
 
I lost a flowering crab from my backyard right after I moved in years ago. It was looking kind of dry so I started watering it separately the rest of the year. The next year it looked worse and I realized there was something really wrong after it was too late. I was told that there was a fungus going around that probably got it. That was about 15 years ago though.
 
usedcarguy said:
Probably infected with a terminal fungus. Those things don't live forever. Seems like I read somewhere once that if it's one that was originally grafted to the roots of an apple tree, about 30 years is the life expectancy.
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No idea when the tree was planted but our house was built in the mid 90s so it’s around that old at the most.

It wasnt really well cared for before we moved in. I trimmed a good number of low hanging branches (including one fairly large one) a couple years ago but sealed everything I cut that was a decent size.
 
Clonefan94 said:
I'm no expert, but that looks exactly like frost cracks from harsh winter, based on what a tree guy told me happened to my red maple in the front of my house. I had the same thing happen to it. It should repair itself and be OK as long as nothing gets into it.
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I was thinking maybe the same thing from what I googled. I might just treat it for insects and see what happens. It’s a really good size for our front yard and if prefer not to replace it. I have no idea what would go into replacing a a tree in the same spot an established one was just removed from.
 
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AgronAlum said:
The base looks fine I think?

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Next time I'd stay away from putting in plastic mulch underneath the wood chips. I'd be worried about water and air exchange when you have impermeable layers like that. Works great for weeds, but I see many cases where the tree has a root rot due to this (and when the mulch is too close to the trunk).
 
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My advice would be to buy a chainsaw and hire a stump grinder.
 
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