Question
Hi! I just read the question a few months ago about holes in the bark of a lacebark elm...it came up when I googled holes in lacebark elm.  But, I am having a different type of hole in the leaves of my new tree.

We purchased a 45 gallon lacebark elm about 6 weeks ago for our front yard and it is beautiful! It is still 80% deep green but we are having some problems with it now that we can't figure out. We noticed a week ago that about 20-30% of the leaves have tiny little holes in them. The holes look like they are slowly going through the leaf as in deterioration as opposed to the holes just popping up one day. The odd thing is, the tree is also thriving in other parts as there is an overabundance of new growth on the ends of the branches as well...probably 30% of the tree branches have new growth!

Then I also have leaves browning and curling up on the back side of the tree only but that is a heavy wind side.  We water the tree 3x a week for about 30 minutes each watering(hose onsteady stream) and have fairly decent clay drainage soil (zone 7-central TX).  We had one nursery tell us we are underwatering which we do not think is the case and another nursery tell us it is in an "adjustment phase" which might be true but doesn't seem to explain the holes.

Like most tree owners, we are trying to find the problem early and catch it but can't seem to find what we need online. Please help us save our tree!!!!!!!!

Thanks!


Answer
The tree is going through tranplant shock and that may explain the curling and brown leaves.  This should subside with time as the tree adjusts to its new environment.  As far as the holes are concerned, make sure there are no insects on the underside of the leaves that could be causing the holes.  Another possibility may be a fungal or bacterial leaf spot.  There is a disease called shot-hole that is caused by a fungus that may be the major culprit.  I would recommend treating the tree with Hi-Yield Copper Fungicide just as a precaution to prevent any further development of holes if they are truly being caused by the fungus.  You will need to treat again about 7-10 days after the first treatment.  Then you can sit back and look very carefully over the next few weeks to see if new holes develop.  If they do, re-treat again.  The copper is extremely safe and wont hurt anything.  I hope this helps give some idea of what the cause may be and how to fix the problem.  Good Luck.