American beech tree is a large, interesting addition to any property in need of greenery during the warmer months and visual interest during the winter. The beech's gray bark, pointed dark green leaves, spindly twigs, and cylindrical winter fruits offer a wide range of visual focuses that can delight a homeowner.
Make sure the beech stays healthy and visually appealing with the assistance of a tree care service that can help you diagnose and treat any insect infestations. Here are a couple of the insects that can prey on the American beech tree and potentially cause major damage or death to the tree.
Beech Blight Aphids
Beech blight aphids are small insects covered with white tendrils that resemble wool. When gathered in large collections on the branches of the beech, the aphids can resemble snow. The insects eat on the tree's organic material for sustenance and leave behind a combination of powdery mildew and honeysuckle that can further weaken the tree's structures.
The aphids aren't hard to remove and your tree care service can simply blast off the creatures with a strong hose of water. But you need to treat the insect problem as soon as it occurs or the aphid-caused damage can leave your tree vulnerable to the fungus that causes beech bark disease. The beech bark disease is fatal for the beech tree and you would then need to call in a tree removal service to deal with the problem.
Gypsy Moths
Gypsy moths are an invasive species that lay offspring that become caterpillars in the beech tree's bark. The caterpillars go through numerous molting stages during growth and grow hungrier with each stage. The hunger is fed on the tree's organic materials, which will start to cause defoliation including premature loss of leaves and dieback of twigs.
If your tree care service catches the infestation early, the larvae can be easily treated with chemical controls or plucked off the tree manually. Advanced or thicker infestations can sometimes be treated by chemical controls if the tree is hearty enough to survive the defoliation. Weaker trees might not regrow in the spring and you might need a tree removal service like TimberMen Tree Service.
You want to take care of a gypsy moth problem as quickly and efficiently as possible because this insect can feed and damage a wide range of trees. Leaving the infestation in place can lead to the moths moving on to other trees in your yard or neighborhood and repeating the damage there.
