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River birch branches #751655

Asked May 23, 2021, 7:20 PM EDT

Can you help me figure out why this river birch is so sparse and has many dead branches?

Ottawa County Michigan

Expert Response

Can you please provide a little more information?

Have the leaves been falling, or is this all the leaves that appeared this spring?

Did the tree had sparse foliage last year or in previous years?

How often is the tree watered?

River birches typically lose leaves in July due to heat and water stress. ... The name “river birch” indicates the environment this tree loves: moist riverbanks. When the soil around its roots gets dry, the tree quickly shows its unhappiness by dropping leaves.

An Ask Extension Expert Replied May 25, 2021, 9:58 AM EDT
It has really always been sparse with leaves. The leaves have not fallen off, they just never came. The leaves turned yellow a couple years ago in the summer. 

There was much more dead branches on it that I took off. 

I do have drip irrigation that waters the tree twice a week. I just installed that last spring. 

Thanks 

On May 25, 2021, at 09:58, Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:


The Question Asker Replied May 25, 2021, 10:06 AM EDT
The fact that the tree has always had sparse foliage would likely indicate that the tree was not properly planted. For example, if the tree was balled and burlapped or wire-tied, was the burlap or wire ties removed before planting? Even if so, were the roots fanned out or were they left in a tight ball. If the roots are restricted, it only take a few years for them to begin wrapping around the root ball eventually choking the tree. In effect, the tree's roots are not able to uptake enough nutrients or water to support a denser canopy.

Your best resource for diagnosing and treating your tree is to consult a certified arborist. An arborist is a certified and generally insured expert in trees and their problems. He or she can examine your tree and make recommendations regarding the health of the tree, any needed judicial pruning, and whether or not (in his opinion) it should be removed. You can find a certified arborist in your area here:

http://www.treesaregood.org/

Click on "Find an Arborist" at the top of the page; then click on United States from the pull-down menu. Then enter your State and City. This should bring up a list of certified arborists nearest to you. Or you may be able to locate one under "Tree Services" in your local Yellow Pages.





An Ask Extension Expert Replied May 25, 2021, 10:32 AM EDT

In addition to a problem that may have been created by improper planting, here some other possibilities for you to consider:

Have any herbicides or pesticides been used on the tree, the lawn under it, or other nearby plants?

Have there been any environmental stresses on the tree such as the removal of a large shade tree, heavy equipment used above the roots, etc.?

Each spring, river birch trees are visited by two common pests - aphids and a caterpillar look-alike known as the sawfly larva. While these insects will not kill the tree, they can cause leaves to drop. Have you seen any evidence of these? (The link below will tell you all about them.)

https://www.starnewsonline.com/article/NC/20090521/News/605056294/WM

Also check for evidence of wood eating bronze birch borer. These pests do exactly as their name describes, they eat away at the river birch (Betula nigra) leaving behind a damaged and unhealthy tree. It’s not unusual to see a birch tree that has been stressed for a number of years be finished off by this pest. Look for tunnels under the bark. Here is additional information:

https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/E-50/E-50.html

An Ask Extension Expert Replied May 27, 2021, 11:24 AM EDT

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