Causes of Brown or Black Spots on Tree Leaves

Every homeowner wants a lush landscape that enhances the property’s overall aesthetics. A lot of time and effort goes into maintaining a healthy yard, and brown or black spots on your trees’ leaves can be a surprise. Southern Star Tree is a professional tree care company with experienced arborists ready to help you address the problem before it gets out of hand. The discoloration is often associated with a fungal infection, hence the need to work with a trusted tree service to detect, diagnose and rectify the problem.

Fungal Infection

If you see black or brown spots on the leaves of your trees, chances are you have a fungal infection problem. While there are other potential causes of discoloration in leaves, like bacterial infection or insects, the most likely culprit is a fungus. Before taking matters into your own hands, we recommend contacting a tree service provider for help. This eliminates guesswork, guaranteeing a long-term solution to the issue.

Luckily, spotting is usually an ornamental problem, and there’s a good chance it will resolve the issue. However, if you notice these spots over several weeks or spreading to healthy foliage, you need to take action as soon as possible. We inspect your trees to determine the cause and severity of the damage before recommending a solution to preserve the life of your trees.

Symptoms You Might Notice

Symptoms vary depending on several factors, such as tree species, size, shape, and black and brown spots. Our expert arborist can account for these factors to determine the cause of the problem based and viable solutions. Spots that look like they aren’t part of the leaf or appear as dark speckles are usually caused by scale, aphids, mites, and whiteflies.

If brown spots are only on the bottom of your leaves, and the leaves appear shiny and dry, you may deal with nematodes or thrips. The appearance of these symptoms is a cause for concern, and you need to call a professional tree care company for professional help. Some signs show a more severe underlying problem that only an arborist can detect; the more reason to hire a licensed technician for routine maintenance.

What Should You Do?

The appearance of brown and black spots is frustrating, but you can take a few steps to mitigate further deterioration. The first step is to stop the spread of infection before it affects the surrounding healthy trees. Rake up the leaves as they fall off and dispose of them before pruning affected limbs to slow the spread.

Keep the leaves dry, but if it’s raining, you can limit overhead watering as infection can be spread by splashing water droplets. If you want to use a fungicide, consult a reputable tree service for advice. The last thing you want is to apply a fungicide that causes more harm, hence the need to call an expert.

Contact us at Southern Star Tree and schedule a consultation with our representatives to learn more about maintaining healthy trees. We guarantee exceptional tree care services at competitive market rates.