I have two beautiful giant 85 year old pin oaks on my property right next to each other. About three months ago I had a new driveway and patio put in. Over the past three weeks one of the oaks had all of its leaves turn brown very quickly, by the end of three weeks the tree went from looking fine to not having a single green leaf. I had an arborist look at it (he was registered by the ISA) and he very quickly said Tree's dead, cut it down. I am devastated. Is it possible that some shock could have stressed the tree and it may still make new leaves in the spring? I didn't think that upsetting a tree could kill it so fast - only three months since the yardwork. Any advice would be appreciated. -Joshua Wein New Jersey
symptoms: dead looking trees, rapid defoliation after construction. probable causes: construction damage. what to look for as a homeowner - how deep did they dig near the trees? what percentage of the tree's critical root zone (within the canopy to the dripline) was disturbed? what was the vitality of the trees in question over the last 5 years? Is there any bud development visible? how to touch the tree and learn more - cut into the defoliated branches (small ones, 1/2" thick or less) and see what the insides look like. if the interior is dried and brittle it is unlikely you will see any recovery any time soon if at all. re: registered arborist via the ISA. The fact that someone is certified by the ISA or just a member of the ISA (you dont need to be certified) is not a guarantee of professionalism or good business practices. What it does show is the the certified individual has proven a level of knowledge based on an exam given by the ISA. Try to get a referral from a neighbor or aquaintance towards a qualified company or individual. Check for insurance coverages, BBB membership, customer testimonials and sometimes just instincts. A company that is hired to evaluate the potential for a tree to live and prosper that also has a tree removal division may be somewhat biased.... Get more than one opinion if you are uncertain. wouldnt you rather pay out a couple of one hour consult fees and learn that the tree might be recoverable, or be certain that spending the large sum of money to have them removed is indeed the right thing to do. and as I like to say to most queries... show us some pictures if you can. cheers, Paul
Thanks for advice Thank you for responding. Unfortunately the closest branch to break off is more than 50 feet in the air. I think I'll try to find someone who can give me an opinion without keeping his feet on the ground. My plan was to not take the tree down until I see if it recovers at all this spring. Since if it is dead it is newly dead it probably doesn't pose too big a risk and if I do see leaves forming then it's a keeper. There was no digging but about 18" of new soil was placed over about 20% of the area under the canopy. That was only about 3 months before the tree "died" though. Do you think the tree has any hope? Do oaks defoliate quickly when shocked then recover? Thanks Josh
Many trees, and Oaks can be considered as part of the particular grouping, have myriad surface roots, and not the least purpose of these is the aspiration of oxygen. If the tree has been (historically) healthy, then it must be presumed that some event has precipitated the sudden change in its' physiology. In that as little as four inches of new covering soil can asphixiate the roots, I would presume that your eighteen inches, has, with no doubt, done just that. Unfettered, the roots try to provide nutrients to the canopy. The canopy can grow no more nor less than is proscribed by the root system. If you trim the canopy, the now oversized root system can provide more than enough nutrients to quickly establish new growth in the canopy. However, if you trim (kill) part of the root system, the balance between root and canopy is now altered. The canopy is now deprived of nutrients and will decline. It must, for it isn't getting the food it had been accustomed to receiving. Further, were you to 'hatrack' the canopy (i.e. massively chop off limbs), to try some semblance of 'matching' the canopy to the new reduced root structure, you still might be disappointed. If the earth movers drove over any of the remaining soil under the tree, albeit not placing any fill in that area, the simple act of running equipment in the area under the canopy will compact the soil, and accomplish the same deed as adding fill - - - except that it will take (usually) two to four years for the tree to die. Of course, the contractor is long gone by that time. Golly, I guess if I were in your shoes, I would wait until the shock has worn off the tree, see what, if anything, tries to regenerate due to the altered state of the roots, then trim the tree accordingly. It may not be pretty. Sorry.
Is the tree's entire drip line covered by patio or concrete? If not, there are some things you can do to help out your tree. We have a very large Willow Oak, 70 feet tall by 70-80 feet wide recover nicely after a new sidewalk was put in. This tree is in a lawn area approximately 60 feet wide with a sidewalk and asphalt road lining each side. The tree started to show signs of stress or decline and we killed out all of the turf underneath it from the trunk out 10 foot past the dripline then put down a 4 inch layer of pine straw. Each fall an application of Milorganite 6-2-0 is put out. Two years later, the tree is looking better than ever. The huge mulched area underneath keeps mowers, equipment, and people (as much as possible) from further compacting the soil. We also implemented this same technique with a 200 year old American Elm that started to decline, probably from old age. It is always worth a try.
Despite sounding like a Monday morning Quaterback....I would have enlisted the arborist's service BEFORE construction & get from him/her, a procedure/scope of work that the contractors would have to follow. Sure, the contractor may have charged more, but then you'd still have two Pin Oaks. Pin Oaks are not really the most drought tolerant oaks. The root disturbance (damage & soil compaction) plus the typical summer dry period equals perfect timing for brown/dead leaves & tree. It might leaf out next spring but with a large % of the crown dead. Simon