QuestionI have a river birch tree in my back yard that is 2 yrs old. My concern is that is seems to be infested with flies and a few lady bugs. The majority of the leaves look good, however, there are a few that are almost a yellowish color and have ridges on them. Do I need to be concerned?
AnswerSounds like the tree has one of the insects that suck the juice from the plant. You should be able to feel the leaves and they should be sticky. This is called honeydew and is from the insects that are feeding on the plant juices. The ladybugs are feeding on the insects. It could be white flies or aphids--either way I would recommend that you spray the foliage with an insecticide for Aphids. Check with your local nursery/garden type store and ask them for a systemic insecticide for aphids and/or whiteflies. Spray both sides of the leaves wetting them and this will kill the aphids and whiteflies. Unfortunately it will also kill the ladybugs present.
