Oak Wilt and Dutch elm is getting bad

[Capitalist]

Is it getting any worse in your area? I own a tree service and this year I have taken down more trees dead from Dutch elm disease and oak Wilt then I have in my entire career.

There is two that I just looked at elms I mean and they were trimmed in May by powerline clearance trimming crews and it's pretty obvious that they infected it.

I desperately am getting sick of seeing gorgeous oak trees turned off.
I looked at one here a while back and I actually did it too low I should have been about $10,000.
It was the only tree around with oak Wilt and entire neighborhood is nothing but oak trees and likewise it's pretty obvious this one was contaminated by a trimmer.

I was the fifth person to bid that job and I was the first to tell him what killed it.

I guarantee you whoever cuts that tree down is going to wind up trimming other trees down that street and it's going to be all over that place.

I'm getting freaking tired of having to wash my stuff in bleach.

I just took down eight oak wilt trees and we got the forestry involved on this job. I told them I want them to assess the job I did I'm still waiting for them to come look and give me opinion.

I'm hoping it's just because this year was so hot and dry but regardless it's getting out of control in my area.

Personally I think asplundh should have to divvy up some of their 400 billion dollars per year net, to fix this since they absolutely have no practices in place for prevention.

If you don't hear from me again it's because Asplundh had me killed. I'm going to go dig a complex of underground tunnels and booby trap it with chainsaws and wood chippers!

 

[Lightning Performance]

@Capitalist

It's no different here, unfortunately.

They create their own market by spreading disease.

Try soaking your tools in gasoline. Easier faster and cheaper to just use old mix or old dead gas.

 

[Capitalist]

@Capitalist

It's no different here, unfortunately.

They create their own market by spreading disease.

Try soaking your tools in gasoline. Easier faster and cheaper to just use old mix or old dead gas.

I will try the gas on my saws especially I don't hardly know what to do with my saddle and my ropes I wash in detergent. Thanks for the tip.
Bleach is hard on stuff

 

[Lightning Performance]

I will try the gas on my saws especially I don't hardly know what to do with my saddle and my ropes I wash in detergent. Thanks for the tip.
Bleach is hard on stuff

I wash my stuff just like clothing in net bags then hang it up to dry. The woodstove is handy come winter for drying ropes and gear after storm cleanups. I use very little detergent and usually some fabric softener on my static lines. My saddle has no leather only nylon, steel and the back pad. Fiberglass bozen seat so it needs no care.

 

[mikewhite85]

I assumed Dutch elm is a thing of the past. Very rare to see a mature American elm in Northern PA unless it's regularly treated. The ones that are around seem to get elm yellows.

Oak wilt is beginning to hit our region, especially red oaks. I have consulted with homeowners where every red oak in their yard was affected.

I've read about trenching between roots and doing preventative fungicide injections. It seems like a very expensive and impractical solution. It may be the next EAB- especially in hot places like Texas where the disease has more time per year to infect.

We generally don't prune oaks until mid October for that reason.

It IS sad to see this happening. It also creates a market for an educated arborist.

 

[ATH]

Where are you @Capitalist ?

It is hitting northern Ohio hard too. Haven't seen any in my immediate area (Findlay), but west of Toledo is hammered as is Cleveland area and south to at least 71. Spots in Columbus, but not as bad as further north.

Try hard to wait until October or November to do those Oak removals. Much lower chance to continue the spread. I know that isn't always possible, but it is "best practice" for controlling spread.

Start spreading the word about no pruning in the summer. Talk to the city about pushing back against utility pruning oaks as well.

 

[ATH]

I assumed Dutch elm is a thing of the past. Very rare to see a mature American elm in Northern PA unless it's regularly treated. The ones that are around seem to get elm yellows.

Oak wilt is beginning to hit our region, especially red oaks. I have consulted with homeowners where every red oak in their yard was affected.

I've read about trenching between roots and doing preventative fungicide injections. It seems like a very expensive and impractical solution. It may be the next EAB- especially in hot places like Texas where the disease has more time per year to infect.

We generally don't prune oaks until mid October for that reason.

It IS sad to see this happening. It also creates a market for an educated arborist.

DED: juvenile elms have some resistance. They lose that resistance over time. Often, it is several years after they lose that resistance before they are exposed so it is not terribly uncommon to find 20" plus diameter trees.... But they all seem to get it at some point.

Oak wilt isn't worse in TX than MN.... doesn't have multiple generations per year. Infection window is longer, but root graft spread accounts for something like over 80% of Oak wilt.

Fungicide treatment (macro infusion) and root graft cutting are real management tools when used appropriately. Or they can be very expensive and useless when used wrong.

 

[Capitalist]

I assumed Dutch elm is a thing of the past. Very rare to see a mature American elm in Northern PA unless it's regularly treated. The ones that are around seem to get elm yellows.

Oak wilt is beginning to hit our region, especially red oaks. I have consulted with homeowners where every red oak in their yard was affected.

I've read about trenching between roots and doing preventative fungicide injections. It seems like a very expensive and impractical solution. It may be the next EAB- especially in hot places like Texas where the disease has more time per year to infect.

We generally don't prune oaks until mid October for that reason.

It IS sad to see this happening. It also creates a market for an educated arborist.

About Dutch elm that's exactly what I thought it was supposed to have extinct the species a long time ago but it didn't and it went away for a long time but now it's back.
Almost all of the Dutch elm disease trees I have seen have been along power lines

 

[Capitalist]

Where are you @Capitalist ?

It is hitting northern Ohio hard too. Haven't seen any in my immediate area (Findlay), but west of Toledo is hammered as is Cleveland area and south to at least 71. Spots in Columbus, but not as bad as further north.

Try hard to wait until October or November to do those Oak removals. Much lower chance to continue the spread. I know that isn't always possible, but it is "best practice" for controlling spread.

Start spreading the word about no pruning in the summer. Talk to the city about pushing back against utility pruning oaks as well.

I agree and just think about this 71 highway runs straight into Missouri where I'm at. Humans are spreading these diseases more than root transmission. I believe.

 

[Capitalist]

DED: juvenile elms have some resistance. They lose that resistance over time. Often, it is several years after they lose that resistance before they are exposed so it is not terribly uncommon to find 20" plus diameter trees.... But they all seem to get it at some point.

Oak wilt isn't worse in TX than MN.... doesn't have multiple generations per year. Infection window is longer, but root graft spread accounts for something like over 80% of Oak wilt.

Fungicide treatment (macro infusion) and root graft cutting are real management tools when used appropriately. Or they can be very expensive and useless when used wrong.

I love your input and you clearly know more than me about both.

 

[Capitalist]

Where are you @Capitalist ?

It is hitting northern Ohio hard too. Haven't seen any in my immediate area (Findlay), but west of Toledo is hammered as is Cleveland area and south to at least 71. Spots in Columbus, but not as bad as further north.

Try hard to wait until October or November to do those Oak removals. Much lower chance to continue the spread. I know that isn't always possible, but it is "best practice" for controlling spread.

Start spreading the word about no pruning in the summer. Talk to the city about pushing back against utility pruning oaks as well.

Btw all my oak trims now are set for October. I needed money when work was slow but I told all of my customers that wanted oaks trimmed that they would have to wait until October. I refuse to back off of this even if it cost me my business.

Trees gave me a couple decades of income. I used to not care. They took care of me that long now it's time I gave it back.

I am so sick of seeing perfect healthy 100yr + oaks turned off like a light switch.

 

[Capitalist]

Where are you @Capitalist ?

It is hitting northern Ohio hard too. Haven't seen any in my immediate area (Findlay), but west of Toledo is hammered as is Cleveland area and south to at least 71. Spots in Columbus, but not as bad as further north.

Try hard to wait until October or November to do those Oak removals. Much lower chance to continue the spread. I know that isn't always possible, but it is "best practice" for controlling spread.

Start spreading the word about no pruning in the summer. Talk to the city about pushing back against utility pruning oaks as well.

I am on the Missouri/Kansas line. Sorry, I just saw that question.

 

[Capitalist]

DED: juvenile elms have some resistance. They lose that resistance over time. Often, it is several years after they lose that resistance before they are exposed so it is not terribly uncommon to find 20" plus diameter trees.... But they all seem to get it at some point.

Oak wilt isn't worse in TX than MN.... doesn't have multiple generations per year. Infection window is longer, but root graft spread accounts for something like over 80% of Oak wilt.

Fungicide treatment (macro infusion) and root graft cutting are real management tools when used appropriately. Or they can be very expensive and useless when used wr

 

[Capitalist]

@ATH I apologize if my responses are annoying you but I'm trying to learn a little bit about this and I was just doing some reading and up north your guys's window seems to be April 15th through July 15th. Down here in Missouri or Kansas it's more like April 15th through September 15th. Clearly you already know this because you just said to wait until October and that's what I tell people is I will give them the first two weeks of October which leaves me little to no time to trim oaks and give a good canopy raise and still be able to see the leaves.

With just about any tree the optimal time to trim it is in February and that's when we are all pretty stagnant as far as work goes and I think that's pretty sad.

I am very much a hypocrite because I used to just cut trees without worry but once I saw what oak Wilt caused I started to care a lot more and now I am very passionate about it.

Back when I used to log when I was a kid I cut down oak trees that were 10 times older than I will ever live to be and I felt bad about it sometimes but it was just part of the process.

I am not a tree hugger or a hippie or anything I just want to make sure the trees that took care of me all these years are taken care of.

 

[ATH]

We wait on all oaks until October 1 at the earliest. There is some literature out there talking about July 15...but the consensus seems to be Oct. I have found that taking a hard line on that actually GETS us more jobs than it costs is. "Nobody else seemed concerned about that" says the client. "It might work out OK...but I don't want to get a phone call in 2 months asking why your big oak is suddenly dead". They think about that, wonder why the other guy wasn't concerned...and ask us to get to it in the fall.

Here is a good article with a lot of good summarized points:
https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/plpath-tree-02
More info...really anything from Jenny Juzwik... https://www.nrs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/jrnl/2011/nrs_2011_juzwik_001.pdf

 

[ATH]

PS: when you remove trees, what are you doing with the wood? Chips are good. Logs? Need to be dealt with before next spring.

(no worries about too many questions - we are all here to learn! I was just at an Ohio Oak Wilt Working Group workshop on Wednesday and picked up a bunch of info - always more).

Oh, also - last I saw Dr. Juzwik has found no benefit in sanitizing tools. I would do it if I were going from an infected tree to an uninfected tree...But then again, I'm not pruning oaks during infection period so maybe not so important. The disease dies pretty quickly outside of the tree.

 

[Capitalist]

PS: when you remove trees, what are you doing with the wood? Chips are good. Logs? Need to be dealt with before next spring.

(no worries about too many questions - we are all here to learn! I was just at an Ohio Oak Wilt Working Group workshop on Wednesday and picked up a bunch of info - always more).

Oh, also - last I saw Dr. Juzwik has found no benefit in sanitizing tools. I would do it if I were going from an infected tree to an uninfected tree...But then again, I'm not pruning oaks during infection period so maybe not so important. The disease dies pretty quickly outside of the tree.

It would seem to me that if the disease died very quickly outside of the tree then the disease would no longer exist. It is widespread transmitted to vastly different areas.

 

[Capitalist]

PS: when you remove trees, what are you doing with the wood? Chips are good. Logs? Need to be dealt with before next spring.

(no worries about too many questions - we are all here to learn! I was just at an Ohio Oak Wilt Working Group workshop on Wednesday and picked up a bunch of info - always more).

Oh, also - last I saw Dr. Juzwik has found no benefit in sanitizing tools. I would do it if I were going from an infected tree to an uninfected tree...But then again, I'm not pruning oaks during infection period so maybe not so important. The disease dies pretty quickly outside of the tree.

When I remove trees I burn on site whenever possible if I'm unable to burn on site I take it to a private burn area.

 

[ATH]

It would seem to me that if the disease died very quickly outside of the tree then the disease would no longer exist. It is widespread transmitted to vastly different areas.

Will live in the roots for 4-5 years...This is why it is good to herbicide stumps of removed trees to try to kill the root system, but that doesn't always work - which is why the root graft trenching helps.

I think the number I heard tossed out there Wednesday was that it can move underground 40' per year. This is why it is important to act fast when trees are showing infection. If one tree is infected but not dead (still has decent amount of green leaves), it seems you can girdle or remove it before the fungus reaches down the trunk and into the roots and stop the spread.

 

[ATH]

...

With just about any tree the optimal time to trim it is in February and that's when we are all pretty stagnant as far as work goes and I think that's pretty sad.
...

While February may be "optimal", for everything except Oak and Elm, it really doesn't make that much of a difference what time of year you prune. Even if the weather holds, we couldn't do it all in Feb anyhow.

While winter pruning reduces disease spread, summer wounds heal more rapidly...so if disease spread isn't such a concern, maybe summer is better for pruning.