While it may be easy to ignore sometimes, healthy trees in your New York landscape are susceptible to disease.

To know exactly how to care for your trees, you first have to understand what kinds of pests or diseases they are susceptible to.

Here’s some information from a professional tree service in Bedford, NY, to ensure you know what to do when your trees become diseased.

The 6 Most Common Tree Diseases in New York State

These are some of the most common tree diseases in the state and what you can do about them:

Dutch Elm Disease

This fungal disease attacks the phloem of elm trees. It spreads primarily by the European Elm Bark Beetle but can also spread through root grafting between nearby elm trees.

 The fungus causes wilting and yellowing leaves, which eventually turn brown and die. As the disease spreads, more branches on the infected tree show these symptoms. Infected branches may eventually die from the top down, and the tree will die if not treated.

Oak Wilt

This disease affects many varieties of oak trees. It occurs due to a fungus that spreads through root systems or beetles that feed on infected sapwood.

Symptoms include wilting leaves and leaf death starting at the top of the tree and working its way down. The disease will cause branch death as well, leading to the eventual death of the tree.

Anthracnose

Anthracnose refers to a collection of diseases that infect trees and shrubs, including dogwoods.

They’re most prevalent in periods of high humidity. Symptoms include leaf spots and twig dieback. Fungicides treat this disease, but they’ll only be effective if applied during wet weather.

Cedar-Apple Rust

Cedar-apple rust occurs due to a fungus that lives on juniper and apple trees and cedar leaves, causing galls.

The fungus causes yellow spots on leaves, premature falling off of fruits, and fruit rotting. Prune out infected limbs and spray fungicide on affected areas during rainy weather in summer.

Leaf Blight

Leaf blight is a disease that affects trees and shrubs. It is a fungal infection, but there are other causes as well. The leaves of the affected plants turn brown, then yellow, and then fall off as if they were burning. In some cases, the entire tree or branch may die.

The best way to prevent leaf blight is prevention – pruning or removing dead branches can help reduce the risk of infection in nearby plants. You can also ensure your trees get enough water by watering them regularly during dry spells and mulching them well.

Powdery Mildew

Powdery mildew occurs when spores land on plants infected with powdery mildew and cause white powdery growths on the plant’s surface.

This disease spreads quickly and can affect all parts of the tree or plant, rendering it unviable.

Contact an Arborist in Bedford, NY, for Professional Tree Care Services

Have you been noticing some changes in your trees? Are they starting to look a little sickly?

If you have questions about tree diseases or trees that look diseased or unhealthy, you might want to consider contacting an arborist for professional tree care services and to learn more about diseases and insect treatment.

At North Eastern Tree, Shrub, & Lawn Care, we offer customers the best tree planting and tree care advice in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. We are a family-owned company dedicated to helping you ensure the long-term health of your trees.

Contact us today or call (888) 439-8733 to schedule a free assessment to ensure the long-term health of your trees in Bedford, NY.