When somethings not quite right with your landscaping trees, you quickly take notice. However, to the novice eye, it can be difficult determining if a tree is dead or alive.

Do you have questions like, “Is it dead, or just dying? Or, “If it’s dying, how do I nurture it back to health?

These are common questions to have when you notice your tree is not the same as it once was. Continue reading to learn what you can do to tell if your tree is dead or in the stages of dying.

Fishers Tree Removal 317-537-9770

A Dying Tree

A tree that does not look as vigorous and vibrant as it used to appear may be in an early state of decline, or already dying. This could be brought on by a number factors, such as pest infestation, wildlife tampering, disease, poor soil conditions, construction damage, and more. The best place to start when you suspect your tree is dying is at the twigs. All you need is a small pocket knife or sharp pair of scissors. You can even use your fingernails if they are long.

How to Test Your Tree:

❦ Go out to your tree and cut off a small twig.

❦ While doing so, take note of how easily or difficult it snapped off.

❦ Then, with twig in hand, scrape off a small section of bark to reveal the meaty flesh beneath.

❦ If the flesh is moist and yellowish to green in color, you are dealing with a tree that is still alive, but needs professional tree service to be brought back to health.

❦ However, if the inner flesh is dry, brittle, and dull in color, it is likely a dead tree. In this case, you will need to take a closer look.

Secondary Inspection:

❦ Test a few more twigs in the same way as before to confirm their condition. If you find any twigs with moist, green flesh, there a chance the tree is just in a state of decline. This is good news because it may be able to recover with proper treatment.

❦ If you test a few more limbs and only find dry brown inner flesh, move onto the trunk of the tree to confirm if the tree is in fact dead.

❦ At the base of the tree, look for fungal growth. This is a common sign that the tree is decaying in the root zone or from within.

❦ Also look for tree bark damage, such as peeling, cracking, or missing tree bark.

❦ Then inspect the leaves in the canopy of the tree for missing, deformed, or discolored foliage.

❦ All of these signs indicate a dead tree. In this case, you would need professional Fishers tree removal service.

Tree Care Fishers Indiana 317-537-9770