Knowledgebase
Oh my Yellowwood tree! #874863
Asked June 26, 2024, 6:07 PM EDT
Ingham County Michigan
Expert Response
Do all of the leaves with browning have holes in them, like the one in the photo? Is the browning of leaves uniform throughout the canopy, or localized in certain areas on the tree (such as the SW side, or just at the ends of branches)? Is there any kind of pattern? Can you provide a couple of more photos showing several of the injured leaves still on the tree?
It appears to be leaf scorch, a type of sunscald that can occur when leaves are unable to adequately cool themselves in hot weather. I'm not sure about the holes, which could be insect damage, which could also be contributing. Injury to the roots could certainly contribute, reducing the amount of water the tree is able to take up. Direct sun, heat, and wind are also implicated.
To reduce stress, supply supplemental irrigation when the top several inches of soil are dry. The tree requires around 1 inch of water per week, over the root zone.
The requested photos and information will help ensure the correct diagnosis.
For information on leaf scorch (written about oaks, but the principles hold): https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/leaf-scorch-or-oak-wilt-what-s-plaguing-my-tree
Do all of the leaves with browning have holes in them, like the one in the photo?No. Just a few so that may be unrelated to the larger circumstances.
Is the browning of leaves uniform throughout the canopy, or localized in certain areas on the tree (such as the SW side, or just at the ends of branches)? Is there any kind of pattern? Can you provide a couple of more photos showing several of the injured leaves still on the tree?No. However, the appearance is spotty, on the top of the canopy, and on lower branches about 4 feet above the roots. It does appear on leaves at the top of the canopy. where we can't reach. On walking around the tree, brown touches appear primarily on new growth, and at the end of the branches.The brown appears to start at the leave tips and work up near to the veins. Have added photos near to the top of the tree. Also, most of the damage appears on the southwest side of the tree. Img 7861 is from the understory leaves taken from northeast side of yard. The remaining three photos are at the top of the canopy from the southwest side where most of the leaf damage appears.Environmental conditions have been up and down here this summer. Rain dumps, then spells of dryness. Some yards in the neighborhood have patches of brown grass. Our small yard doesn't, but we have a large border of mixed flowers. We think we're getting enough rain, but we may be fooled. We haven't kept track here. We've had unusual winds.
Once again, thank you for your help. At a minimum, we will water more. As the construction holes were open during recent rains, they filled with rainwater, so it may be the tree missed some of that moisture.
Cindy K (your Master Gardener trainee!)
Hi Cindy! Given the tree species, your detailed description and supporting photos, I would expect this to be leaf scorch. The most you can do is "keep the patient comfortable" with supportive measures such as irrigation during dry periods. It will be a year or more before you really get a good idea of how the tree will fair long term. It may do just fine, or it may drop some branches to compensate for reduced water uptake, depending on how badly the roots were damaged. On particularly hot days, it wouldn't hurt to hit the leaves with some mist from a hose to help with cooling, though the effects are temporary, and you want to be sure there is plenty of time for the leaves to dry before nightfall.
