Question
I Live in the Pacific NW. My Lilac that has been here since we moved in, has developed a brown spotting in the leaves and the leaves are slightly curled, this tree is at least 20 years old. This has spread to two other trees that I have planted in the last 5 years, all the trees are close to each other but not crowded.

Answer
Hi Janice:
Many different things may be responsible for the leaf spots. Can you send along a closeup photo of a few representative leaves that have the spots and curling? Be sure to review your image on your computer first- to be sure it is in focus before sending. This will help me get a better idea of the spots that you describe.
In the meantime, I have a couple of questions about this. (1) Do the spots seem to be widespread over all or most of the tree? (2) Do the spots seem to contribute to a leaf drop or is it mostly just cosmetic? (3) Are the "other" trees also lilac? (4) When did you first see the spots (year and month)start to appear on the tree? and (5) Does it seem to be getting worse?

Thanks
Steve