Sycamore - Sudden death!

[William Clifford]

Hi all,

 

I worked on this Sycamore last summer and it seemed in good health. We carried out a crown raise and due to a lot of pressure from neighbours, the owners finally relented and instructed us to remove one of the stems - which you will be able to make out in the photos.

 

I have been called again because they have noticed it doesn't have so many leaves this year. Looking at the leaves that have shot from the base and even the water shoot from a branch, I am thinking poisoning. The other small plants around the small (dead!) Crab Apple (which I think from memory was alive last year), look yellow etc. This could be the recent weather, but the whole area looks like it has been given a dose of poison. I'm wondering if the LA has been past spraying the alleyway including the wound where the stem was removed, or if someone who wanted the tree removing previously has had an input. Anyway, from the pictures of those distorted leaves, what do you think is happening? The tall thin Sycamore next to it is looking rather sparse, the final one along is still looking healthy.

 

Thanks.

[peatff]

Last year 5 large Sycamores in a local park just lost a lot of bark and died. The bark was flaking off and the trees lost half their leaves and then the rest went and they were taken down. One was left but that now looks ready to drop.

[se7enthdevil]

could it be the lack of rain???

[William Clifford]

Do you think so? To have such a sudden effect on a large tree, and what is causing the few leaves to grow in such distorted clusters - and to be discoloured? My thinking is that a poison is affecting the growth and the chlorophyll in the leaves. Or am I off the mark??

[Gary Prentice]

The leaves do look like herbicide damage tbh.

 

i don’t know why but sycamore does seem quite susceptible. We poisoned a nearby tree after using glyphosate on a sycamore stump. The leaves discoloured and fell off within 2-3 weeks and we assume that there were root grafts between the two.

[Gary Prentice]

10 hours ago, se7enthdevil said:

could it be the lack of rain???

I doubt it on a semi mature tree, with a reasonably normal rooting environment. 

 

Locally, the only drought stress visible seems to be the newer plantings and moderate sized birch. More mature trees don’t seem to be suffering yet. 

Most of our highway trees planted over the last two winters are almost dead.

[skyhuck]

Looks like a new fence, has there been much development/land disturbance near the tree?

 

[Khriss]

Might have got fed up with the tennis k

[woody paul]

That regrowth on stump is defo spray damage maybe councils contractor court it or some one nearby wants it gone all together.

[fagus]

Leaves on the subject shown have herbicide damage.