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I have a Norwegian Spruce that is about 22 years old that is starting to die. Is there anything I can to stop it? Also, I planted 6 Blue Spruce tree...
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Evergreen Issues #375800
Asked November 07, 2016, 4:38 PM EST
I have a Norwegian Spruce that is about 22 years old that is starting to die. Is there anything I can to stop it? Also, I planted 6 Blue Spruce trees 4 years ago and last year one died. Now I have a second one that is loosing its needles. I thought maybe it was spidermites since I believe they are on some Boxwoods and Birdsnest Spruce in my yard that the centers have died out. I love my trees and hate to loose them. I have attached photos of both. Please help. Sherry Tetoff
Gallia County Ohio
Expert Response
Sherry,
Thanks for your tree questions.
First allow me to talk about "evergreens." We consider plants that do not shed all of their leaves (needles) each year to be evergreen. The reality is that the leaves (needles) do not stay on the plant forever. Each year's new growth overlaps with the previous year's growth and the year before that. At some point, the inner needles will die and drop from the tree. There are different lengths of time in which that occurs. White pines shed old, inner needles every fall and many evergreens shed on a regular basis, but not as dramatically. Here is an article about this:
http://bygl.osu.edu/node/612
The Norway Spruce that you sent photos of seems to have good new growth at the tips and the inner needles have shed and left bare branches. The gray growth you see on the branches is lichen which is a fungus and algae living together. They do not feed on or harm the tree at all. They are just using the branches as a place to be supported. Please read the article in the issue of the Buckeye Yard and Garden onLine below:
http://bygl.osu.edu/pdf/2014/BYGL-2014-26.pdf
The loss of the inner needles does not indicate the death of the tree, it is just doing it's normal thinning with age. The effective life of evergreen trees in our landscape as screens or specimen trees really is about 30-40 years.
The photo of the Blue Colorado Spruce is a different story however. The needles have fallen off of the old and new growth. This is really a cause for concern.
It could be pests such as spider mites or a disease or environmental issues. It is not possible for me to tell from a photo on the computer.
The loss of leaves (needles) on the boxwood and Birdsnest Spruce may or may not be related to spider mite populations. Spider mites can infest evergreen trees.
Here is a fact sheet from The Ohio State University about mites:
http://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/HYG-2012-11
It is possible that your tree could have a disease. Those really require a diagnostic process. Here is the best list of potential problems I can find. The fact sheet is from the University of Illinois:
http://web.extension.illinois.edu/plantclinic/downloads/Plant%20Clinic%20Report%20Spruce.pdf
The last possibility is environmental. Since the Blue Colorado Spruce is young (4 years since planting) and we had a very difficult drought year with some interruptions of almost flooding rains, the tree may be suffering from too little or too much water. Also, check how deeply the tree is planted. It should not look like a pole coming from the ground but should have a slight outward flare to the trunk where it emerges from the soil. You may need to dig down in the soil to locate that flare.
I hope this has equipped you with information to look at the health of your trees.
If we can help further, please ask again. Thanks for your question.
Thanks for your tree questions.
First allow me to talk about "evergreens." We consider plants that do not shed all of their leaves (needles) each year to be evergreen. The reality is that the leaves (needles) do not stay on the plant forever. Each year's new growth overlaps with the previous year's growth and the year before that. At some point, the inner needles will die and drop from the tree. There are different lengths of time in which that occurs. White pines shed old, inner needles every fall and many evergreens shed on a regular basis, but not as dramatically. Here is an article about this:
http://bygl.osu.edu/node/612
The Norway Spruce that you sent photos of seems to have good new growth at the tips and the inner needles have shed and left bare branches. The gray growth you see on the branches is lichen which is a fungus and algae living together. They do not feed on or harm the tree at all. They are just using the branches as a place to be supported. Please read the article in the issue of the Buckeye Yard and Garden onLine below:
http://bygl.osu.edu/pdf/2014/BYGL-2014-26.pdf
The loss of the inner needles does not indicate the death of the tree, it is just doing it's normal thinning with age. The effective life of evergreen trees in our landscape as screens or specimen trees really is about 30-40 years.
The photo of the Blue Colorado Spruce is a different story however. The needles have fallen off of the old and new growth. This is really a cause for concern.
It could be pests such as spider mites or a disease or environmental issues. It is not possible for me to tell from a photo on the computer.
The loss of leaves (needles) on the boxwood and Birdsnest Spruce may or may not be related to spider mite populations. Spider mites can infest evergreen trees.
Here is a fact sheet from The Ohio State University about mites:
http://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/HYG-2012-11
It is possible that your tree could have a disease. Those really require a diagnostic process. Here is the best list of potential problems I can find. The fact sheet is from the University of Illinois:
http://web.extension.illinois.edu/plantclinic/downloads/Plant%20Clinic%20Report%20Spruce.pdf
The last possibility is environmental. Since the Blue Colorado Spruce is young (4 years since planting) and we had a very difficult drought year with some interruptions of almost flooding rains, the tree may be suffering from too little or too much water. Also, check how deeply the tree is planted. It should not look like a pole coming from the ground but should have a slight outward flare to the trunk where it emerges from the soil. You may need to dig down in the soil to locate that flare.
I hope this has equipped you with information to look at the health of your trees.
If we can help further, please ask again. Thanks for your question.
