What Should I Do With This Dying Tree?

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hank2001

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It appears that this young tree is dying (see pics). This is my 1st house so I have no idea what I'm doing. :) I think it's an oak tree, but I don't even know. Is it an oak tree? Anyway, last week I removed a lot of mulch that was surrounding the base of tree, and moved it back from the base. I read that too much mulch around the base of a tree could suffocate it, especially if it's a young tree. Last week I also inserted tree fertilizer stakes along the tree's dripline.

I'm not sure what to do next. Leaves are only growing on 1/4 of the tree. The rest of the tree is bare. Should I go ahead and cut off all the dead branches? Is there a technique for cutting off branches without doing too much damage to the tree? What's up with the bark at the base of the tree? Is the tree diseased? Can the tree actually be saved? Should I start thinking about replacing it with another? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Tree1.jpg

Tree2.jpg

Tree3.jpg

Tree4.jpg

Tree5.jpg
 
It could be a few things. Did you recently buy the house and have it inspected? Oak Wilt is rampant where I grew up, in fact it causing some issues with my grandmother trying to sell her house now. On the other side give it a little longer. I'm in Texas too and the Majority of my trees are just now getting leaves on them again.


Oak wilt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here's some more info on Oak Wilt.
 
Did the tree come with the house or did you plant it? Some of the home centers and nurseries around here actually have a 1 year warranty, you might actually be able to return it!

I dont know about Oak Wilt...

The tree is being starved of water would be my guess. I am guessing that this is being caused by the messed up bark near the base. What caused the bark to come loose, I don't know.

Good idea about keeping the muck volcano in check. Yes, that can cause issues.

I would water it every day if possible, at least a few days a week, and see what happens. If by next spring it doesnt improve then replace it.

If you want instant gratification then replace it now.
 
It could be a few things. Did you recently buy the house and have it inspected? Oak Wilt is rampant where I grew up, in fact it causing some issues with my grandmother trying to sell her house now. On the other side give it a little longer. I'm in Texas too and the Majority of my trees are just now getting leaves on them again.


Oak wilt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Here's some more info on Oak Wilt.

I recently bought the house in April. It was inspected, but the inspector didn't note the tree on the inspection, and I completely overlooked it. Thanks for your reply.
 
Did the tree come with the house or did you plant it?

The tree is being starved of water would be my guess. I am guessing that this is being caused by the messed up bark near the base. What caused the bark to come loose, I don't know.

The tree came with the house. Thanks for your response. I'm going to cut the dead branches off, water it more, and wait a year to see what happens.
 
The tree came with the house. Thanks for your response. I'm going to cut the dead branches off, water it more, and wait a year to see what happens.
That sounds like a good option, but if oak wilt is in your neighborhood you might want to get that one looked at. They had to trench my neighborhood but it put the wilt in check.

You could probably just ask your neighbors if you had any questions. Most everyone in my neighborhood knows about it.
 
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