The horned oak gall is a golf ball-sized growth caused by a small wasp insect (Callirhytis cornigera) which can cause extreme disfiguring and dieback of certain oak species. They are often found on young twigs and have protruding horns through which young females emerge to continue the cycle.

The horned oak gall wasp occurs from southern Canada and throughout the Midwest. It attacks the twigs of pin, scrub, black, blackjack, and water oaks. Infestations on young trees can be the most devastating, but older trees will be dangerously affected as well. Galls prevent nutrients and water from moving into new growth, resulting in severe dieback.

Treatments for Horned Oak Gall

Trunk injection with TREE-äge® (Emamectin benzoate) or TREE-äge® G4 will provide both preventative and curative control depending on the time of year treatment is applied. We recommend treatment in September of this year, or early spring next year. Treatment in September will reduce early pest damage next spring. TREE-äge will provide control for a minimum of a year, and potentially up to two years. Treatment are very effective in managing stem and twig insects when applied as a dilute injection prior to spring insect emergence. The most effective treatments are applied to trees at risk of infestation. Treatment will prevent new galls but will not eliminate old ones and will additionally protect your trees from up to 51 other pests.

Call Rite-A-Way Tree Service for a Free Quote: 314-427-7325. Let Rite-A-Way properly treat your tree to help keep it healthy and increase its longevity.

Oak Wilt is a lethal disease that is specific to oaks, especially species in the red oak group but it can also affect white oaks. 

The fungus responsible, Bretziella fagacearum, invades the tree, causing it to die. It is spread through root grafts between neighboring trees and by insects. Red Oaks are particularly susceptible to oak wilt. The infection causes leaf discoloration, defoliation and death in a very short period of time (from two months to one year). Fungal mats will form under the bark and force outwards, cracking the bark of the tree. White oaks are more tolerant of oak wilt infection. Fungal mats will not form and it will take much longer for the tree to succumb to the disease. White oaks will show infected annual rings when viewed in cross section.

In Missouri, the oak wilt fungus is spread primarily when sap-feeding beetles carry oak wilt spores to fresh wounds during the early part of the growing season. Once established in a tree, oak wilt can move though root grafts to nearby oaks.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR:

In Red Oaks: 

Browning and wilting of leaves in the upper crown in early summer. 

In White Oaks:

Browning and wilting of leaves in scattered branches and wilting leaves in the crown.

Wilted leaves look olive drab or light tan to bronze starting at the margins and progressing toward the leaf base. Brown or black streaking may be seen under the bark of wilted branches in both groups of oak.

In red oaks, rapid defoliation (leaf loss) can occur within two to six weeks of initial infection, and death occurs within a year. White oaks may take years to die from the infection.

When conditions are ideal for oak wilt, fungal mats form under the bark of dead red oaks in the spring following tree death.  The fungal mats cause cracks in the bark and emit a sweet, fermenting odor that attracts sap-feeding insects that spread the fungus. Squirrels may chew through the bark to expose these areas.

Treatments for Oak Wilt

We recommend a trunk injection of Propizol. Propiconazole is a systemic fungicide that will suppress then fungus. Because Oak Wilt is spread through root grafts and insect carriers, we recommend the treatment of non-infected oaks in close proximity to the infected trees to slow the spread of the disease. When treating multiple trees, it is recommended to disinfect drill bits and injection equipment between trees.

Call Rite-A-Way Tree Service for a Free Quote: 314-427-7325. Rite-A-Way will properly treat your tree to help keep it healthy and increase its longevity.

This condition, if allowed to progress, will cause slow growth, leaf loss, and eventually tree death. Chlorosis is often caused by deficiencies of the micro-elements iron and manganese, and is particularly prevalent in oak. In alkaline soils, iron and manganese become insoluble and unavailable to the tree. Trees growing in poorly drained soils are also susceptible to iron chlorosis.

Treatments for Chlorosis

We recommend a two-pronged approach to treating foliar chlorosis.

Trunk Injection: by injecting to apply Mn-jet Fe™ which is specially formulated for iron deficiency, minerals which are deficient in the tree directly into the xylem tissue, these minerals available to the tree immediately; thus, it is the fastest way to alleviate symptoms of chlorosis and improve the health of the tree. By rapidly providing the minerals the tree needs, it is able to respond rapidly and generally will have darker, healthier leaves within days or weeks of application.

Soil Application: Arborjet recommends a supplemental follow-up application of NutriRoot®, which should be applied as a soil drench. NutriRoot is a unique two-component formulation of a water manager and nutrient blend. The nutritional supplement includes humic acid, kelp, and micro-nutrients designed to enhance soil conditions for accelerated root development. NutriRoot makes watering more efficient, reduces plant stress, and increases water storage in plants.

Call Rite-A-Way Call for a Free Quote: 314-427-7325. They will properly treat your tree to help keep it healthy and increase its longevity.