Q: We have a twenty five year old flowering crabapple tree. Over the last several years, it has become covered in lichens, which we know are not harmful to the tree. Right now there are almost no leaves on it.

A: No matter what I do to my forehead, I still have wrinkles. This tells me I’m getting older and will reach the end of my anticipated life span sometime down the road. Since the usual life span of a crabapple is 25 – 30 years, I think advancing years are creeping up on us both! It is almost impossible to revive a tree that has declined as much as yours. Plant a new ‘Donald Wyman’, ‘Profusion’ or ‘Prarifire’ in the spot where you remove the old one.