Dealing with Fungus on Your Magnolia Tree Trunk

The lovely magnolia tree is the belle of Southern gardens and is also surprisingly cold-hardy sometimes. These strong trees aren’t too fussy and don’t need much care, but magnolia tree problems can make your plants look bad and hurt their health.

Pests are more likely to attack deciduous species, while evergreen species are more likely to be affected by changes in their environment.

Whatever the cause, it is distressing to see one of your trees ailing. Here are 11 common problems with magnolia trees, along with possible causes and ways to get your tree healthy again.

A few different diseases can cause leaves to become discolored, covered in spots, or brown lesions. The most common are:

Phyllosticta leaf spot is caused by the fungus Phyllosticta magnoliae. Signs include little black or purple spots that can get bigger over time and have a white center and halo around them. This fungus doesn’t bother old trees too much, but it can kill young trees that aren’t fully grown yet.

Leaf blight is another disease that can cause brown or black spots on the leaves. It generally affects trees that are under stress already. This can happen during drought or when there is a lack of nutrients. Blight is a waterborne bacteria and can cause tip dieback on branches.

The third disease is the most serious and is called Verticillium wilt. This is a fungal infection that affects the water-conducting tissues of the plant. Leaves will turn yellow to brown, and foliage will appear wilted. A soil test is needed to diagnose this issue.

Sadly, there is no fix for Verticillium wilt. Mature trees can outgrow the disease over several years, but the tree’s growth will be permanently stunted. The damage can be mitigated with pruning of affected tissues, proper watering, and fertilizing. Young trees are unlikely to survive. This fungus lives in the ground, so a tree that dies from it should be cut down and thrown away. The fungus can live in the soil for up to 5 years.

Both Phyllosticta leaf spot and leaf blight can be helped by quickly pruning away affected foliage. Don’t be conservative about removing any branches you think may be infected. If blight reaches the tree’s trunk, it is fatal. Sprays with hydroxide and copper sulfate are often used to treat blight, but pruning is the best way to get rid of it.

Phyllosticta can be treated with a copper-based fungicide to control the infection. By doing this and careful pruning, this disease should be controllable. It typically does not kill a mature tree. An advanced infection in a younger tree can be fatal.

If you notice leaves beginning to shrivel and curl inward, you probably have an insect infestation. Insects like aphids, scales, and thrips like to feed on the sap of magnolia leaves. As they drink the sap from the leaves, they will start to curl inward, which may look bad but usually isn’t dangerous to the tree’s health.

A mature tree can usually handle insect damage without too much harm to its health as a whole. However, the tree may suffer if it is young or severely infested.

Generally, no treatment is needed, as insecticides are damaging to beneficial insects as well as pests. Most pests have natural predators that will clean up the problem for you once they find it. If the infestation is severe, treating with insecticidal soaps or neem oil will help control the spread. Treating at night will help to mitigate the damage to pollinators. Try not to treat when the tree is in bloom.

Caterpillars are another common magnolia tree problem. There are several species of moths and butterflies whose larvae like to feed on the leaves. Sometimes this can look like leaves with irregular edges that have clearly been chewed on.

The fruittree leafroller, fall webworm, and cotoneaster webworm are all larvae that feed on magnolia leaves. Some caterpillars will eat the soft parts of leaves and leave only the veining, which can make the leaves look like they are covered in webbing or have a lacy look.

Generally, a mature magnolia will support these insects through their larval stage with no real damage. If the infestation is bad enough, though, these bugs can hurt the tree so much that it no longer works well.

Remove all damaged foliage with clean hand shears. Look for egg masses on the tree’s trunk and branches. Take them off and get rid of them by dropping them in a bucket of soapy water. Good hygiene habits like watering, fertilizing, and pruning will keep your tree strong so it can recover from the damage these bugs do.

If you notice your magnolia dropping leaves in the fall, you may have a deciduous species. This is a natural occurrence that takes place every year. The leaves on your tree are getting ready to fall off. In the spring, the tree will grow its leaves back and probably bloom. Lucky you!.

Magnolia trees that never lose their leaves, like the popular Southern Magnolia, will do so on their own every once in a while. If you notice a larger number of leaves dropping simultaneously, you’re most likely to see flowers soon. This is the tree’s way of redirecting resources to flowers and is not a cause for concern.

This issue doesn’t usually warrant a response. Sit back and enjoy the flowers your beautiful magnolia tree is about to produce. On evergreen magnolias, pay attention to where the leaves drop from. If it is preparing to bloom, it will drop its oldest leaves. If more leaves begin to die off and a massive number fall, another issue is probably at play.

Leaf and Branch Dieback

This leads us to the dieback of leaves and branches. First, make sure that the tree isn’t losing its leaves naturally in the fall or in early summer before the flowers bloom if it’s a deciduous tree. If the leaves are falling off too soon and whole limbs start to turn brown and lose their leaves, you may have a bigger problem.

The most likely culprit of this in an evergreen magnolia is cold damage. If you had a particularly cold winter, there might be frost damage to some of the outer limbs. To a certain point, evergreen magnolias can handle a certain amount of cold, but long periods of extreme cold can kill the new growth.

Once the threat of freezing weather passes, prune off dead branches and allow the tree to recover. The tree will grow new, healthy leaves after getting some fertilizer. By the end of summer, everything should be back to normal.

Yellow Leaves With Brown Edges

The weather is likely to blame if your beautiful magnolia leaves look faded and yellow with dry brown edges. It may seem strange to say that very cold weather and very hot weather would both make the same thing happen, but it does.

Very cold, harsh winds have the same effect on leaves that drought has. Because of the dry, brown edges, the leaves look like they’ve been burned because the water evaporates so quickly.

It’s best to cut off as little damaged growth as possible and take extra care of the tree for a while. There is not much else to do after the damage is done. Some of these problems can be avoided by giving the tree enough water during drought. If the tree is young and small, you can cover it if you know it will be very cold.

Magnolia flowers have different lifespans from one species to another. Some types, like the huge Southern Magnolia, have a lot of flowers that bloom one after the other but only last one to two days each. Others, like M. in the spring, like the Japanese Magnolia or the Soulangeana. The purple magnolia blooms can last for a week or more.

If you are worried about flowers dying and turning brown, the first thing you should do is find out how long the blooms on your tree last. If the blooms are opening and are already brown or look like they were wilting from the start, it’s probably because of the weather. Once again, extreme heat or cold can put stress on a magnolia, affecting the blooms.

There is little to be done about the weather. The best solution here is to keep up with general tree health by watering, fertilizing, and pruning. A magnolia in optimal health will have the least reaction to environmental stress. Make sure to water weekly in times of extreme heat or drought.

If you live somewhere very cold, you should put your magnolia tree somewhere that will protect it from the wind. It is the cold winds that typically do the most damage, not the actual temperature shift.

If a magnolia tree isn’t flowering, it might be because it’s not getting enough sun or the soil is too acidic. Magnolias need a fair amount of sun. Most types prefer full sun and will produce the most flowers in this situation.

Soil pH is a little more complicated but can generally be rectified without transplanting. Magnolias like slightly acidic soil. Because the soil is acidic, the nutrients in the soil and fertilizer are broken down so that the tree can use them best. If the pH of the soil is too high, or too alkaline, the tree is likely to become malnourished. Flower production will be the first thing to go.

If you want to plant a magnolia, make sure it gets at least six hours of direct sunlight every day. If soil pH is the issue, a soil test will give you the necessary answers. Magnolias need a pH of around 6, give or take.

To raise the pH of your soil, add organic material like manure, pine mulch, or compost. Soil acidifiers are also available, but they tend to be more costly. Although they work faster, they do not last as long as amending the soil with organic materials.

Magnolia trees are not fast growers, to begin with. Every year, the tree will grow about one to two feet. Smaller trees reach full height in about ten years, while larger species can take up to sixty years.

There are many reasons why your magnolia might be growing so slowly, such as not getting enough food or being attacked by pests. If you’ve ruled out all the other growth-inhibiting factors on this list, nutrition is probably the culprit.

The short answer: fertilizer. Before you do anything else, check the pH of your soil. If it’s too alkaline, the nutrients in the fertilizer won’t break down in a way that the tree can use them. Check the pH and then make sure you are fertilizing properly.

There is no need to use a lot of fertilizer on magnolias, but they will do better if you plan when to do it. Magnolias should be fertilized 2-3 times during their growing season with a balanced fertilizer.

In early spring, late spring/early summer, and mid- to late summer, spread granular fertilizer (8-8-8 or 10-10-10) around the base of the plant. Fertilizing is particularly important during the tree’s early years.

Removing fungus on trees

FAQ

How do you treat fungus on a magnolia tree?

What is the disease on the trunk of my magnolia tree?

What does a diseased magnolia look like?

Do magnolia trees have fungus?

Just like many other plants and trees, Magnolia trees are usually attacked by various diseases and pest infections. It may also fall victim to fungal issues. The treatment done for fungus depends on the condition it suffers from. Here are the different fungal problems to learn about and how you can treat it: 1. Leaf Spot Diseases

How do you treat a fungus in a magnolia tree?

The best way to treat a fungal infection is to remove infected branches, leaves, and debris from the tree and surrounding area. Additionally, it is important to apply a fungicide to the tree to help kill off the fungus. Pests are another common cause of disease in magnolia trees.

How do you know if a magnolia tree has a fungal infection?

Fungal infections are a common cause of disease in magnolia trees. Some of the signs of a fungal infection include discolored foliage, wilting leaves, premature leaf drop, and brown spots on leaves. If you notice any of these signs, it is important to take action right away.

What diseases affect magnolia trees?

Here’s what you need to know about the most common fungal diseases that affect magnolia trees. The most common fungal diseases of magnolia trees include powdery mildew, leaf spot, and canker. Powdery mildew is a fungal disease that affects the foliage of magnolia trees, resulting in a white, powdery coating on the leaves.