Question
QUESTION: Mr.Gulliksen: I have a flowering crabapple (don't remember the name; follage is maroon in color) that's about 10 feet tall. For the last 3years the leaves seem to be stunted and produces no small fruit. The bark is splitting and the bark at the base of the tree is allmost all gone. There seems to be a light green fungus growing at many locations. The only leaves that appear to be normal in size are the ones growing at the tips of the new branches.All the rest seem small and allmost wilted. Can you help?
Jeffrey Schwab, Bellingham, Wa 98226 ([email protected])

ANSWER: Jeffery,

It sounds like there was some basal damage to the plant (this is usually caused by weed wackers that are used to trim the grass around the bases of trees growing in a lawn area). This damage is restricting the nutrient flow from the roots to the leaves.

I would recommend pruning it back and fertilizing it well to encourage new stronger growth. Keep it well watered and it should reocver somewhat, the damaged areas will not regenerate, but the tree should redirect the water and nutrient flow through the undamaged areas.

Good luck,
Ed Gulliksen

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: There is no occasion when a weed wacker was used near the tree. I don't even own one. There is an area at the base of the tree about 10 inches high where 80% of the bark is gone. The leaves are near wilted and no fruit is produced. There must be some other explination. The tree has been ferttilized with both plugs and liquid fertilizer. No effect! What about some crab apple desease?

Answer
Jeffrey,

Well since neither you nor any landscaper that you might have hired have ever hit the base of the tree with lawn mowers or weed wackers, then there are only 2 other possibilites for the damage to the base- small animal feeding or armillaria canker.

Small animals such as rabbits, voles or mice will feed on the bark of trees if other food sources are scarce. I do not know if there are any of these types of critters in your neighborhood.

The root rot disease armillaria can sometimes cause the bark to peel off, but not usually. You would be able to teel this disease by the white mycillium that would be present under the bark. This disease is extremely difficult to control, the only way is to directly inject fungicide into the tree's cambium layer.

Good luck,
Ed Gulliksen