I was just called out by a elderly home owner conscerned about her big locust tree in the front yard. For some reason the trees leaves are already all brown. A few of the other locust trees in the neighboring yards are starting to get big brown areas in them as well. She also told me that it has stopped getting its long fruit pods for about the last 4-5 years now. The tree is heavily sprouting around the trunk but not on the upper portions of the tree. And I did notice one small mushroom starting to come out of the bottom of the trunk. It looked like it just started to come through. She wants to know if the tree is sick or anything. I haven't heard or seen any locust trees like this before. Does anyone know of a disease or anything or what it could be. She wants to know if it can be cured or if it should be removed. I am almost thinking removal with the small mushroom coming through and the heavy sprouting on the lower section. Any opinions or knowledge is very much appreaciated.
Locust tree.
- Thread starter dhuffnmu
- Start date
- Location
- Home of the New Jersey Devils
If it's a Black locust, I'd say that it's just a leaf miner. Not to be too concerned with the brown leaves, they'll be green again in the spring.
The sprouting along the trunk sounds a little bit more serious to me. The mushroom is also a sign of heart rot and can be hazardous. Maybe a sample is in order?
The sprouting along the trunk sounds a little bit more serious to me. The mushroom is also a sign of heart rot and can be hazardous. Maybe a sample is in order?
treebing
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Detroit, Mi.
Here in Michigan, all of a suddun some kind of bug is hitting up all the honey locusts, turning them completly brown. they make a web all over the leaf and then the whole tree becomes scortched from the outer edges in. Many trees dont look like they have any green left at all. This is all in the last two weeks that it has become striking that something is goin on and I have yet to hear what it is.
treebing
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Detroit, Mi.
I have been living here for the last 4 years. I have recently heard from a not completly reliable source that it may be the mimosa webworm that is wreaking havoc on the honey locusts. It is actually mostly isolated in birmingham, westbloomfield along 15 mile road, but it is every single locust. some of them are completly brown with no green left at all. luckily it is late in the season.
treebing
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Detroit, Mi.
I'm a climber who recently stopped working for Alan's tree service out of Clawson. I live in Detroit and am now freelancing, taking it easy and finding different jobs here and there. What about yourself.
Anyone know anything about the Mimosa webworm? is that a possibility for the honey locust problem going on here?
Anyone know anything about the Mimosa webworm? is that a possibility for the honey locust problem going on here?
- Location
- Home of the New Jersey Devils
Fall web worm and some miners are browning a bunch of locusts here. Bad stuff.
treebing
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Detroit, Mi.
dhuffnmu, I sent you a PM with contact info. Hope to talk to you soon.
Mark, I have never really seen it before. How do you mean bad stuff. Some trees seem a lot worse than others. Is it sort of like Gypsy moth in that they might be fine next year in the spring but if they get hit again they will use up their reserves?
Mark, I have never really seen it before. How do you mean bad stuff. Some trees seem a lot worse than others. Is it sort of like Gypsy moth in that they might be fine next year in the spring but if they get hit again they will use up their reserves?
- Location
- Home of the New Jersey Devils
They are definitely on a cycle. Worse this year for many reasons, drought late this year here for one.
dhuff,
We have tons of black locust here, so I'm pretty familar with them. I grew up with some huge ones in my parents yard.
Anyway, my opinion.
Don't worry about the browning at all. They all get eaten up by leaf minor at the end of the summer. People always call and wonder why their locust is dieing. Somehow they never noticed it before.
Locust are extremely rot resistant, however, for some reason, they get heart rot all the time. At the base, in the tops, everywhere. (They do better as fence posts in the ground or as firewood.) Carpenter ants like to hollow them out too. Black locust inherently seem to have parts of it die and resprout and get hollow and so on. Oh, and they have limbs and tops break out of them all the time, due to the defects and hollow spots. Most black locust tend to have water sprouts all the time, and will root sprout like crazy. They tend to be one of the ones that uproot in wind storms here too.
I think they are a terrible yard tree, especially if you have something they will fall on.
If the tree is around 24" DBH or bigger, and doesn't look in top shape, I can almost garantee you will find hollow in the trunk or top. So, if you take it down, you should be able to show the customer how "bad" it really was.
We have tons of black locust here, so I'm pretty familar with them. I grew up with some huge ones in my parents yard.
Anyway, my opinion.
Don't worry about the browning at all. They all get eaten up by leaf minor at the end of the summer. People always call and wonder why their locust is dieing. Somehow they never noticed it before.
Locust are extremely rot resistant, however, for some reason, they get heart rot all the time. At the base, in the tops, everywhere. (They do better as fence posts in the ground or as firewood.) Carpenter ants like to hollow them out too. Black locust inherently seem to have parts of it die and resprout and get hollow and so on. Oh, and they have limbs and tops break out of them all the time, due to the defects and hollow spots. Most black locust tend to have water sprouts all the time, and will root sprout like crazy. They tend to be one of the ones that uproot in wind storms here too.
I think they are a terrible yard tree, especially if you have something they will fall on.
If the tree is around 24" DBH or bigger, and doesn't look in top shape, I can almost garantee you will find hollow in the trunk or top. So, if you take it down, you should be able to show the customer how "bad" it really was.
treebing
Been here much more than a while
- Location
- Detroit, Mi.
in michigan it is not so much the black Locust but the honey locust that is turning brown. I really haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary in the black locust.
Dhuff, sorr I dont think PM went through. My number is 313-319-0583
I am an advanced level climber currently freelancing.
Dhuff, sorr I dont think PM went through. My number is 313-319-0583
I am an advanced level climber currently freelancing.
guymayor
Branched out member
- Location
- East US, Earth
"If the tree is around 24" DBH or bigger, and doesn't look in top shape, I can almost garantee you will find hollow in the trunk or top. So, if you take it down, you should be able to show the customer how "bad" it really was."
Listen to Licoln; "You can fool some of the people some of the time..." Maybe the next customer's nephew will be an engineer or an arborist who understands that a tree that's 2/3 hollow has only lost 1/3 of its strength and was probably stable until some cut-happy nonarborist laid it to waste.
If there's a reason, like irreversible decline evidenced by heavy epicormics at the base, etc. to remove the tree, then identify and explain that and do the deed. You're better off citing real science than pseudo.
Listen to Licoln; "You can fool some of the people some of the time..." Maybe the next customer's nephew will be an engineer or an arborist who understands that a tree that's 2/3 hollow has only lost 1/3 of its strength and was probably stable until some cut-happy nonarborist laid it to waste.
If there's a reason, like irreversible decline evidenced by heavy epicormics at the base, etc. to remove the tree, then identify and explain that and do the deed. You're better off citing real science than pseudo.
- Location
- Tasmania, Australia
Bamboo is largely hollow and has no trouble holding up. I agree that if we condemn a tree too readily we are doing people a dis-service.
Exactly when to say too much rot is too much is often going to be tricky when we haven't seen or somehow imaged the inside of the tree.
I don't like the idea of justifying a decision by showing a bit of rot. From my experience people are often too ready to be scared of trees unnecessarily and I do not ever want to feed irrational fears to make them feel ok about my judgement.
Pete
Exactly when to say too much rot is too much is often going to be tricky when we haven't seen or somehow imaged the inside of the tree.
I don't like the idea of justifying a decision by showing a bit of rot. From my experience people are often too ready to be scared of trees unnecessarily and I do not ever want to feed irrational fears to make them feel ok about my judgement.
Pete
