We recently attended “Bee Day in the Garden” by Keep Tyler Beautiful. Our certified arborist, Ryan Moody was available and answering questions from people regarding common issues with their trees and grass this time of year. We put this helpful blog together based on those questions.

The hot weather is upon us with extraordinarily little reprieve for our trees, plants, and grass. In this blog we will touch on common problems that arise from unrelenting heat. You have noticed the crepe myrtles are in full bloom by now. Why are there tiny white spots all over the trunk along with sticky and shiny leaves? This is a sign of crepe myrtle bark scale. A relatively new, invasive pest that was first discovered in 2004 but has spread across Texas in recent years. You can tell if the scale insects are alive by pressing on them. If reddish fluid comes out it is alive. If you see little white, dry, flaky “shells” these are the remains of the scale insect that have been eaten by ladybird beetles. They are black-winged insects with two red-orange spots on the wings. Commonly known as, “twice-stabbed ladybug” they eat scale insects at an astonishing rate. On a positive note, it does not pose a major health threat to crepe myrtles, but it is annoying and unsightly, leaving a black fungus to develop. Prevention is best practice and springtime insecticide application is ideal but if you find your crepe myrtles already infected you can wash the trunks down with soapy water and sponges. Once you remove the sticky substance you can spray insecticide to remove the scales already there.

Have you noticed the bark peeling off your trees? This condition is due to sunscald and affects thin barked trees 2-3 years after planting. Taking a young tree out of its protected nursery habitat and planting it in punishing intense summer sun leaves it vulnerable to this condition. It most commonly affects maples, Shumard red oaks and Chinese pistachio trees. Once the damage has been done there is nothing left to do but wait and see if the tree heals itself.

You are watering your St. Augustine grass, but it still looks dry in the sunniest part of your lawn. If you part the grass and see little black bugs with white diamonds on their wings or tiny red bugs mixed in, you have Chinch bugs. Insecticide will alleviate this problem. If you do not see any bugs but your grass is looking brownish or yellow and patchy you could have a fungal disease called gray leaf spot. It shows up in hot weather and likes nitrogen-based fertilizers so avoid those during the summer if you see evidence of this fungus.

Speaking of fungal diseases, Seiridium canker is taking down cypress tree varieties all over Texas. Sadly, it does not respond to fungicides. If you see black sap running down the trunk of your cypress, or large branches turning brown with entire sections dying quickly it is best to remove the infected trees. Unfortunately, Junipers are also facing a similar fate with a different fungus known as Phompsis and Kabatina.

It can be incredibly challenging to properly identify the problem and sometimes the symptoms mimic each other making it even more difficult to discern pests vs. fungus. Tree and lawncare is not always intuitive and sometimes you can do more harm than good with fertilizer or insecticides. If you need an expert to diagnose and treat the problems you are experiencing, don’t hesitate to contact us.