Kansas Arborists Winter Conference 2013

          

 Kansas Arborists Annual Shade Tree Conference 2013

I was able to attend the KAA  conference last week.  It was a great conference and we were fortunate enough to have Dr. Ned Tisserat as a keynote speaker.

Dr. Tisserat was the former head of Plant Pathology at Kansas State University.
He is now with Colorado State University as Professor and Extension Specialist.

Dr. Tisserat and his research team recently discovered and named Thousand Canker Disease of Walnut.

I have known Dr. Tisserat since 1993. He is an incredibly smart man, generous with his knowledge and time.

He is able to take  detailed concepts and break them down for less brilliant minds to easily grasp.

I routinely sent him cuttings and samples to the Pathology lab at K-State. I always had endless questions

and concerns, he always had time for me and my questions. When I was a City Forester, he was instrumental in helping me control a serious outbreak of Oak Wilt.( I never forget people who helped me)

Dr. Tisserat covered many subjects at the conference.A short breakdown:

Drought-We are still in the midst of a major drought, some effects on trees are immediate, we may see growth and health issues relating to this drought over the next several years. Other secondary factors/ pathogens are opportunistic, will move in or colonize trees stressed by drought-esp. Canker Diseases, most are associated with drought conditions.

Cankers/Canker diseases-

Hypoxylon- The most serious, a diffuse type canker, these are one of the few cankers that expand and grow rapidly. These generally lead to tree mortality. I see this on Oak trees after construction activity.

Also included in this diffuse canker category is Thousand Cankers Disease of Walnut.

Cytospora- common on stressed trees, we see quite a bit of this on Cottonwood, Locust, Willow

and Spruce trees.

Nectria- very common on Honeylocust

Botrosphaeria- Crabapple, Pine, Spruce, Rocky Mountain Juniper

Fusarium- Common on Goldenraintree

*Each one of these Cankers has it's own distinct symptoms and fruiting structures used for identification-their own very distinct signature.

Thousand Canker Disease of Walnut-Unfortunately, this disease is headed our way.

There is a statewide quarantine on Walnut logs in Kansas, but that most likely will not stop

people from bringing in infected firewood from Colorado or elsewhere. As of this time,

there are no treatments proven to be effective. I spoke to Dr. Tisserat about this and some other disease issues. He feels it might be possible to treat Walnut  trees with Tree-Age or similar insecticide, but there is no research at this time.

One interesting point that he had is how many Walnuts there are in Kansas. They don't get a lot of attention, but they are in neighborhoods, parks, greenspace and woods everywhere.

Bacterial Leaf Scorch- This is a first for Kansas. Bacterial Leaf Scorch was found on an Elm and

diagnosed positively in a lab.Leaves yellow and appear scorched, tree is defoliated.

This is a fairly significant problem in Eastern states, but the first we have seen it in Kansas.

This bacterium is thought to be spread by insects, specifically  leafhoppers.

In most cases, slow decline of tree and eventual death of tree. Injections of antibiotics will supress symptoms, but are not curative.

Emerald Ash Borer-Is now here, will be a nightmare when beetle populations build.

This is what we can expect to see in untreated trees as populations build over time.
As the  USDA Forest Service map below clearly illustrates, Ash tree mortality rises rapidly as populations build.

I sound like a broken record, but if you have valuable Ash trees, you need to inject them with
Tree-Age insecticide for 2 years of control with a proven 99% success rate.

This is the short version of conference material. My personal thanks to Dr. Ned Tisserat for sharing vast amounts of information with us.

Ipsa scienta potestas est-

knowledge itself is power

Picture of me in Okinawa, Japan 2002. This giant old Ficus tree is close to Shuri Castle, the
palace of the Ryukyu kingdom. Unfortunately this picture does not do this tree justice.
The word massive comes to mind-huge spreading canopy, gargantuan trunk, with roots spreading out over giant stone blocks. Massive roots and trunk are pushing/bowing out giant stone blocks.
The height and girth of this tree lead me to believe it is easily 200 years old and most likely much older.
Ficus microcarpa, also known as Chinese Banyan or more common Banyan tree.

Tree Injections

Tree Injections

People have been injecting substances into trees for hundreds of years, with varied success.

The great Leonardo DaVinci is credited with drilling holes into apple trees and adding arsenic

to poison the fruit and the thieves who were stealing his apples. (No historical notes on the success/failure of his project)

Trees are amazing organisms. They have a vascular system, which makes it possible to inject chemicals directly into the xylem, the water-conduction portion of wood. This ties into the natural movement of water, sugars and starches throughout the roots, stem and canopy. Chemicals are spread efficiently throughout the tree by utilizing  this natural process.

The downside of any injection is we are drilling holes and wounding the tree to get chemical into it.

The question for me has always been: Is the cure causing long term problems for the tree?

When I first started down the path of Arboriculture, I was extremely reluctant to inject/injure trees.

In my original capacity as a City Forester, I witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of Dutch Elm disease and Oak Wilt. When I realized there were a select few chemicals that could control these diseases, I changed my mind. The risk is worth the reward. Trees injected preventatively, at the proper time with the correct dose of chemical can resist these diseases and will not become infected.
(Dutch Elm disease and Oak Wilt are vascular diseases that kill trees quickly).

As I began injecting trees for disease control, I documented some of  my experiences-
Pine trees are almost possible to inject-pitch in the wood quickly clogs injector tips/tees.
Even under increased pressure, they are still difficult and because the wood is diffuse porous, I question
the efficiency of transport and distribution. (We are typically spraying Pines with fungicide for control and
injecting fertilizers into soil and root zones).

Oaks and Elms transport water/chemical very efficiently. Wood is ring porous and will
transport larger volume efficiently.
*Using a macro-injection process, I had an Elm tree uptake 48 gallons of water and chemical in
38 minutes-this sounds crazy, but it pulled it that fast.

I also  found that the vast majority of injection holes closed within1 year,

when done correctly-drilled to the proper depth, using a clean, sharp bit.

The use of high-helix drill bits is also helpful.

There are several reasons for injecting trees, first and foremost is disease control.

Please keep in mind that chemical injections are not always necessary. Some disease problems and many insect problems can be controlled by spraying alone. Some of these issues are cyclical/cosmetic and do not cause serious or long-lasting problems for trees.

You have to be careful, chemical companies market every conceivable type of chemical and injection process . There are always  people that want to sell you things, not because you really need it

or it is important for a trees' survival. There are also some fairly unscrupulous people posing as Arborists

that want to sell you a chemical "program" or just want to sell you a lot of crap you really don't need.

Methods of injection-(Processes)

Macro-injection uses a higher volume of water mixed with chemical and in my opinion, is the most

successful, long-lasting treatment process.

This is the process we use to treat trees preventatively for Dutch Elm disease, Oak Wilt and to treat trees

for Iron Chlorosis.
Pictured below is an American Elm I injected several years ago. Our company is still treating this tree.

It is alive and well, after Dutch Elm disease killed many of the trees on adjacent properties.

This picture illustrates the use of tees, hose and spacing of injection sites using the macro-injection system.

Pictured below is company owner Greg VanBooven using the Medi-ject system to treat an Oak for Iron Chlorosis. This is very common on Pin Oaks and other trees in the Kansas City metro.
 Iron Chlorosis causes leaves to yellow and growth is stunted, mainly a soil PH issue and inability of trees to assimilate Iron and Manganese because of soil PH.
Another example of a macro-injection system, using a high volume of water and chemical.

Micro-injection- I am not a big fan of micro-injection. Small, pressurized capsules are used to get chemical into tree. While it has it's uses on small trees or trees with limited root access, I question the efficiency

and have seen limitations firsthand. I have no pictures of this process, we typically do not use it.

I have used it in dire circumstances to treat for Oak Wilt and it did work, also to inject fertilizer into trees

surrounded by asphalt and concrete, to keep them alive/buy time. I was not a big fan of this methodology/philosophy, but had a client that was insistent.

He wanted to keep trees alive until he could get other trees planted and growing.

*Emerald Ash Borer and preventative Ash injections-

This is just starting in our area. As beetle populations build, it will be a major issue for all

varieties of Ash tree in the next 2-4 years.

There is a chemical and an injection process that will work extremely well to treat for Emerald
Ash Borer. 

The Arbor-Jet system is combination of micro/macro principles. 

Using the chemical Tree-Age, we can treat preventatively for 2 years of control.

When done properly at the correct rates, there is a 99.9% success rate.

Pictured below is the Arbor-Jet system we will be utilizing to inject Ash trees for EAB prevention

If you have questions about tree injections, contact me at brad@vanbooventree.com

"To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders"
Gautama Buddha

Pruning Japanese Maples

Pruning Japanese Maples

Japanese Maples are fantastic trees. Each tree is a work of art, from the small, delicate laceleaf 

trees to the larger, spreading upright varieties. When deciding to have these gems pruned, it might be a good

idea to talk with a Certified Arborist. I  have pruned hundreds  of these magnificent specimens.

 There are some tips and tricks to achieving your pruning goals without taking anything away from the form or causing harm to the trees.

Things to remember- The bark of Japanese Maples is thin and soft. Be careful with your pruning tools.
It is very easy to nick or peel bark if you are not paying close attention.

Make proper pruning cuts at branch collars-Being thin-barked, Japanese Maples are a little finicky about

pruning cuts-improper pruning cuts lead to decay!

If the tree is large or mature enough to be climbed, wear soft soled shoes that will not tear or damage bark.

I have seen some beautiful large, old trees that people had climbed in and caused extensive damage from

their climbing  boots.

Remove deadwood, crossing and rubbing limbs, limbs dragging or touching the ground (common on weeping trees)

Less is truly more with these rare and delicate beauties. You never want to remove a large portion of the canopy. This is unnecessary and can damage the health of the tree.(Think hand pruners and loppers, not chainsaw).

If tree is unusually thick in the canopy, remove inner foliage/layers.

I found two pruning illustrations that I would like to share. These were in an article written by Cass Turnbull of Seattle. I met Cass several years ago at an international forestry conference in Seattle and enjoyed her views on pruning. 

Look deep into nature

"Look deep into nature and you will understand everything better"
Albert Einstein

Pruning Illustrations-A picture can be worth a thousand words.
I would like to share these pruning diagrams. This is a great way to understand what
typically needs to be done to either small or larger sized trees when pruning properly.
The first diagram (below) is a smaller tree needing corrective pruning /subordination.

 In all cases of pruning, we are trying to correct problems and ultimately create a better tree.
 Pictured below is a larger sized tree with the diagram showing  work typically needing to be done.