Question

The tree   Hi,

I have 8 Italian Cypress trees. About 4 months ago one of them slowly turned yellow from the outside, the whole tree at once. It finally turned brown and died. Not the one next to it it starting to turn yellow. Can I save it?

Answer
Ezi:
There may be multiple reasons for the yellowing. Difficult to ascertain positively without examination of a physical sample.  For starters, check the main stem near the soil line for evidences of bark damage from things like string trimmers/lawnmowers.

Water imbalances can lead to stress.  Typically, these plants prefer well drained soil, so check the soil to see how dry or wet it has been previously. After doing these two things, snip off a small twig that is yellowing and carry it by your local nursery/garden center for them to have a look at it.  They may be able to give you some clues.  They can check for spider mites.  These tiny (2-3mm) critters can be a real pain on these plants.

If the whole tree goes yellow then brown, it may point to a root/soil issue as described above.

Regards
Steve