Colorado Blue Spruce terminal branches turning brown and dying?

Question

I have a 10 foot tall Colorado Blue Spruce planted in my lawn. This summer, I noticed about 1 foot of the terminal branch was brown and dead. I removed that branch. Now, about 3 months later, still summerj-time. about 3 other short branches have turned brown and appear dead. Does anyone know what the problem may be and if there is any remedy or treatment?

Answer 1

Dry winters can cause subsequent tip-browning the following summer, especially if the summer is also dry.

"Top-down" die-back is also associated with pine weevil, which is known to attack spruces as well. Or it might also be spruce bud worm - but you would probably see webbing if you look close.

Both overwatering and underwatering can cause root problems which can show up as die-back from the top down as well.

Also - to address the comment of a previous answer - balled and burlapped trees should NOT be "unwrapped" prior to planting. The burlap should be peeled back from the trunk after the tree is planted though, so that none of it shows above the soil. burlap visible above ground will act as a wick, and pull moisture from the soil up into the air. But the burlap around the rootball will keep the roots and soil in good contact, allowing less possibility of air pockets when planting. Air pockets in the soil when planting can kill roots and increase shock. Burlap degrades - even the treated burlap on our B & B trees (in the nursery where I work) often need to be re-wrapped in as little as a year, as it decays even when treated to slow the decay. And roots are completely capable of growing through it even before there is much decay. I see rootlets coming through even before the tree is planted, if it's been around for a few months. Any tree whose roots can not "make it" through burlap have something else seriously wrong with them...and the problem is NOT the burlap!

Answer 2

You don't say where you are, but the north eaast is going through a terrible crisis where wooly adelgids are killing evergreens, and it looks a lot like what you describe.

Fortunately, you can spray with a 1 part Murphy's Oil soap (vegetable based) and 9 parts water solution. That will suffocate teh bugs but you won't see improvement on the tree until next year

Answer 3

How long ago was it planted? It could be several things.

The root ball could possibly have not been unwrapped like it should have.

It could have bag worms.

It could be missing some nutrient in the soil that it needs. A good idea would be to have a soil test done.

It may not be getting enough water.

Or it could be a disease of some sort.