Caring for My American Beech Trees
In order to keep my Bedford, New York farm and all its many gardens, allées, and groves as beautiful as possible, I pay close attention to the maintenance and care of all my trees. I tour the grounds every day and keep track of what needs pruning, feeding, and mulching throughout the year.
Recently, I noticed something wasn't quite right with my American beech trees, Fagus grandifolia. With all the lush spring growth, these trees just didn't look as vibrant or as full, so I called in an expert to take a look.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
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- This is an autumn photo of my grove of American beech trees, Fagus grandifolia. These American beech trees show gorgeous golden-bronze fall foliage. The leaves persist into winter, after turning a pleasing tan color.
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- The American beech tree is considered both a shade tree and an ornamental tree. They can grow to a height of 50 to 70 feet and a spread of around 40 feet at maturity.
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- Earlier this spring, I noticed they didn’t look as lush. I also knew there was a relatively new beech leaf disease that is spreading rapidly through the Northeast killing both mature American beeches and saplings.
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- The disease, which was first spotted in northeastern Ohio, causes parts of leaves to turn leathery and branches to wither and then kill a tree within six to 10 years. Hopefully these trees are not affected, but I definitely needed to help my trees and make sure these beautiful specimens survived.
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- I asked the experts at True Nature to come take a look.
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- The owner, Sebastian “Rocky” Camarillo, assessed all my beech trees and noticed there was something definitely wrong. The leaves looked withered and many had not grown.
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- Held up to the sunlight, the leaves also showed dark bands – a sign of the beech leaf disease.
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- In order to help the trees, the first step was to check the soil. Rocky says, “never guess, always test.” And he took many samples of soil from around the trees. Rocky’s mantra is “if one takes the time to learn the language of the land, the soil will speak.” Good quality, healthy soil is essential for plant growth. Soil helps regulate the water, supports biodiversity, filters pollutants, provides support, and cycles nutrients.
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- Rocky takes soil samples as much as a foot deep or more.
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- And then places the samples in bags. These samples will be tested and analyzed. I am eager to get the reports. Soil tests are available at garden shops and online. It is a good idea to test one’s garden soil every three to five years.
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- Next, Rocky measures the trunk of the tree to see how much food is needed to feed it.
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- Rocky mixes a solution that contains various nutrients including nitrogen, iron, sulfur, magnesium, manganese, boron, and zinc. His truck is equipped with enough hose to go around the entire grove.
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- First he treats the roots. It is very important to feed the roots and the soil to feed the tress.
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- This injector shoots the fertilizer deep into the soil. rocky does this in many locations under the canopy of the tree.
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- And he goes all the way out just past the drip-line of every tree. The drip-line is the area directly located under the outer circumference of the tree branches. When the tree canopy gets wet, any excess is shed to the ground along this drip-line. This is also known as a tree’s critical root zone or root protection zone.
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- This process takes a couple hours to complete – Rocky is very thorough.
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- Then he sprays the top surface and all the leaves of the trees. An invasive nematode is believed to be responsible for the beech leaf disease. These microscopic worms are present in the leaves and buds of infected beech trees.
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- Next, he moves onto the trees surrounding my pool – also beech trees, purple columnar beech trees, Fagus sylvatica ‘Dawyck Purple’. Rocky also fertilizes these trees. Giving the trees extra nutrients will help them fight off disease and remain healthy. So far, these trees look great.
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- We planted about 170 of these trees around my pool in 2018. Columnar beech trees are fastigiate meaning their branches slope upward more or less parallel to the main stem. I knew they would be perfect around the pool, but like all garden specimens, they must be well-maintained.
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- Finally, Rocky will move onto the fastigiate beech trees outside my Winter House and the weeping copper beech trees, Fagus sylvatica ‘Pendula’ – I have several of these beautiful specimens around the farm. It is important to take good care of all trees and to feed. Trees are tough, but nutrient deficiencies can still affect them. This weekend, take note of the beautiful trees in your gardens and yards. I always say, “if you eat, so should your plants and trees.”
Martha Pins
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