Does this look like two cases of Oak Wilt?

[Davelanddesign]

Good evening. I was wondering if this would be two cases of Oak Wilt on two different Bur Oak trees located on one property. The one tree is in the front yard, and the second is on the opposite side of the house, quite a long distance away.

1. The first appears to be what I am familiar with as a case of Oak Wilt.
http://picasaweb.google.com/118198517725055836049/OakTreeDisease#5491759792256900482

http://picasaweb.google.com/118198517725055836049/OakTreeDisease#5491759807224003442

2. The second appears different, and has a much more distinct dark brown/ black edge on the leaves, and the leaves have been affected all over the tree. It looks different than the first, or maybe it is the same but in the earlier stages?
http://picasaweb.google.com/118198517725055836049/OakTreeDisease#5491759815113528674

http://picasaweb.google.com/118198517725055836049/OakTreeDisease#5491759829179505442

If someone has some information or advice, to push in the right direction, I would be very appreciative. Thanks!

 

[RacerX]

Here's an article from the USDA:

http://na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/howtos/ht_oakwilt/toc.htm#intro

 

[ChrisWNY]

Your White Oaks look a lot like my Swamp White Oaks, all sorts of insects chewing holes in the leaves. I don't think it's wilt, especially after reading the link posted by RacerX above. Since Oaks are native species to pretty much the entire Northern half of the US, various insects tend to ravage them during the Spring and Summer. As long as your Oaks are healthy and growing otherwise (they appear to be healthy based on your photos), other than cosmetic issues, there should be no long term negative consequences. Treat the oaks with Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub before bud break in the Spring, or use a Bayer insect killer (any insect spray containing imadacloprid) on the foliage. This will reduce the swiss cheese effect on the foliage, but won't completely eliminate it.

 

[Loraxguy]

Oak wilt it's not

I wouldn't worry about oak wilt on the tree. There's no perfect looking leaf . They either get eaten by bugs, or deformed by fungus or just get beat up by the weather. One photo looked like some leaves curling, cupping and mabe a tad of yellow tint. No herbicides recently applied nearby recently?

 

[S Mc]

As stated there are many leaf fungal issues with trees and oaks are no exception. One of the pictures looks more like anthracnose to me. Anthracnose will also cause a cupping and curling of the leaf reminescent of herbicide damage.

Dave, I am wondering why you stated that the first picture appears to be similar to what you are familiar with Oak Wilt. Oak wilt causes a rather distinctive necrosis to the leaves starting from the outer margin with maintaining a green base.

One of the "diagnostics" to Oak Wilt is the rapid defoliation of a diseased tree, as opposed to other oak maladies where the tree will retain the leaves.

The holes in the leaves could be insect activity....but could also be fungal in nature. I would STRONGLY urge you to find out exactly what is going on before resorting to pesticides. If the primary causal to the holes in the leaves is fungal, then applying an insecticide is going to do no good whatsoever.

Sylvia

 

[pdqdl]

If the problem is fungal, it is probably too late to treat effectively. A better diagnosis will help.

If it is insects, unless defoliation becomes severe, you should just overlook the minor damage. Natural predation will probably manage the problem for you.

If it is oak wilt, the tree will die soon enough, regardless of what you do. If anyone knows of a sure treatment, I would welcome them to tell me about it.
[here is a pretty good commercial site that advertises treatments for oak wilt: http://www.stopoakwilt.com/oakwilt.html
They have excellent diagnostic photos, and lots of informative text on the topic]

Sooo... I recommend watching a bit more, finding out exactly what the cause is, and what the prevention would be for next year. Then decide if it is worth the trouble and expense for what is probably a cosmetic concern.