I have a weeping willow tree that is very mature in my back yard. Last year, I trimmed it away from the house and it seemed to survive okay last summer and fall with new growth, and plenty of green. This year, about half the tree seems almost dead. I broke a number of dead branches off with my extension pole, and I need to know if the tree got infested with something and is dyeing or what else I can do to save it. Currently I put a fertilizer stake in the ground right near it and I also have made a tree ring and water it heavily each day. This tree has never had a lot of water, so it is not our dry climate that got to it. Any help will be appreciated.
From what I have read there are a host of things that could be affecting your willow.... crown gall, black canker, cytospora canker, anthracnose, scab, leaf spots, rust, aphids, basket willow gall, mottled willow borer, scale or nematodes, bacterial twig blight, tar spot, powdery mildew, imported willow leaf beetle, leaf blight. Calling in an arborist sounds like what you need to do.
Try contacting someone at Yavapai College or NAU. Either one may know of someone. Or someone with the forest service. I'll inquire from the reference librarian when I go to work tomorrow and post an answer tomorrow night. Or you can inquire of her yourself. The library is on the third floor of the civic center and is open until 9 pm.dooley
dying willow My advice would be to cut the willow down to a stump. This is a pruning technique suitable for willows. It will sprout back and grow really fast. Don't add any more fertilizer either, the worst thing you can do for a sick tree is fertilize it. It will totally fry the roots.
Sorry to hear it can't be saved, such a beautiful tree. I don't know what the life expectancy is on Willows but from what you said it did have a long life.
