How Insects Affect Trees 

Spiders, insects, and other arthropods make up the biggest animal species in the world. Though they’re tiny, insects can be damaging to shrubs and trees on your property. 

 

Typically, insects leave behind dangerous bacteria that can damage your trees. This can spoil the leaves or branches of your tree. A couple of insects even chew holes in the trunk.  

Today, we’re going to talk about how insects can affect your tree. If you don’t want these things to happen, you can always rely on tree service in Jacksonville NC for help. 

Kinds of Insects that Affect Trees 

There are 3 kinds of insects that can do damage to your trees. Today, we’re going to discuss each one of them. Also, we’re going to share some indications to know if your trees are infected.  

The 3 kinds of insects are sucking insects, boring insects, and chewing insects. 

Sucking Insects 

From the name itself, these pests do damage by sucking the liquid out from twigs and leaves. A lot of them are typically immobile. This means that they nest on the exterior of a limb or branch. They create a protective and hard exterior coating while sucking on the juices of your tree.  

Oftentimes, they secrete a sticky and sweet substance known as honeydew. This consists of the unprocessed material from the plant. Honeydew could lead to the formation of sooty mold on leaves. It’s an indication that you’ve got an issue. 

Lace bug is perhaps the most popular kind of a sucking pest. Lace bugs are small. They’re only around ¼ inches. They usually feed on Indian Plum, Azaleas, and Rhododendrons. They’re called lace bugs since they’ve got a lace-like network of veins that can be found on the wings.  

Nymphs and adults suck plant sap from the leaves underside. Over time, the leaves will become yellow. Also, they leave black tar on the surface of the leaf. If your tree is infested heavily with lace bugs, it will become unappealing. Serious infestation might lead to death.  

Boring Insects 

Tunneling insects, commonly known as boring insects, are the most destructive type. The reason for this is that they bore into the twigs, roots, or stem. They typically eat the tree’s vascular tissues. A couple of them lay eggs deep inside the tree. This will block off the tree’s water-conducting tissues.  

Upper leaves are starved of moisture and nutrients if the infestation is severe. Oftentimes, it leads to the death of a tree if left ignored.  

Indications of Boring Insects 

  • Sections of the crown dying and wilting 
  • Small mounds of sawdust at the base 
  • Exit and entry holes in the bark 

Chewing Insects 

Almost every chewing insect feeds on the tree’s foliage. On the other hand, some feed on the fruit. Beetles and caterpillars are the most popular chewing insects.  

Trees typically bounce back from an attack via repeated infestations. Typically, trees die due to lack of energy. The reason for this is that trees require their leaves for photosynthesis. If there are no leaves, a tree can’t photosynthesize anymore.  

Winterizing Your Trees and Plants 

When it comes to the health of our plants, landscaping, and tree, spring gets the most attention. However, there are also vital steps that you have to take during the winter and fall season. This is also known as winterizing.  

 

Winterizing will guarantee the integrity and strength of your tree against ice, snow, and wind. Also, they’ll allow your plants to thrive during the cold months. 

It can appear as if you can’t do anything from the time the leaves start to fall to the time when the soil is frozen. However, the truth is that there are several things you can do.  

There’s crucial work to be done throughout your property, from grinding stumps to fertilizing the soil to pruning branches.  

If you haven’t hired a tree service in Greenville NC to winterized your trees and plants, here are several things you should do: 

Winterizing Landscapes 

Fall is the best time to plant trees. If necessary, you should plant them late into the fall. The reason for this is that it offers the plant wet and cool weather. This allows them to become established before they’ve got to ensure the harsh heat of summer.  

Also, the cooler temperatures mean they’ll probably require less maintenance such as watering. However, depending on your property and the type of tree, they might still require some. 

Winterizing Plants 

The objective of winter and fall plant health care is preparing them to thrive when spring arrives, aside from surviving the cold months. You can use pro-active insect suppression and fall fertilization treatments to do this.  

During the hot months, the soil is sometimes too hard and dry for fertilization treatments. However, October and September are typically optimal. You can also fertilize late into the fall if the conditions are right.  

For insect suppression, you can treat preventatively for a range of pests. This includes spider mites, hemlock elongate scale, hemlock wooly, and much more. However, you have to count on your own homework to figure out which pests to treat and the best method and time to use the treatment.  

Also, it’s ideal to use horticultural oil on the plants. This will help boost their health and get them ready for winter. It’s a safe substitute for some of the harsher insecticides on the market.  

Winterizing Trees 

When it comes to tree care between fall and winter, the main concern is to ensure that your trees can withstand storms.  

Ice, snow, and wind can be a deadly combination. However, the months between fall and winter are the best time for doing a huge range of tree care tasks. This includes removals, pruning, and inspections. 

The reason for this is that throughout October and November, the leaves will keep on falling. This makes it simpler to inspect and work on limbs. Next, you can get your tools closer to the tree without compacting the soil once the ground has frozen. This will prevent damaging the root systems.  

Lastly, trees during this time are also dormant. This is the best time to prune some types of trees