# Water oak losing its leaves. Need advice.



## none-ya (Aug 13, 2011)

The water oak in my backyard is losing it leaves. I noticed they all have these dark brown spots. 



The shrubs planted underneath the tree also have similar spots.

Are they related to each other? Is it a disease or fungus? How should I treat it? How can I prevent it?


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## SwampRat (Jul 30, 2004)

I just noticed I have the same thing....


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## w_r_ranch (Jan 14, 2005)

It is a fungus called 'actinopelte'. You can treat it with a fungicide that contains copper. Make sure to pickup & dispose of the fallen leaves to help control the spread of the spores. Good luck with you tree!

To learn more:

http://texasoakwilt.org/Documents/Diseases/Actinopelte.pdf


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## none-ya (Aug 13, 2011)

Thanks! It did this late last summer, but I thought it was mostly du to the drought. It's much worse now.

I've been mulching my grass clippings, which includes the leaves, up until now. Will I have to treat my lawn as well? It's a pretty big tree, and it's right between me and my neighbor's house. Should I be concerned about the overspray of any treatment?


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## w_r_ranch (Jan 14, 2005)

none-ya said:


> Thanks! It did this late last summer, but I thought it was mostly du to the drought. It's much worse now.


Did the fungicide you used contain copper? Copper is what used on larger scale agricultural problems (ones we don't have time to revisit on a weekly basis).



none-ya said:


> Will I have to treat my lawn as well? It's a pretty big tree, and it's right between me and my neighbor's house. Should I be concerned about the overspray of any treatment?


 Fungicides containing copper will not harm your grass, I use it on my hay fields. If your neighbor's house is close, you may not want to use it as it will stain it blue. I suggest doing it in the early AM or when the wind is not blowing in his direction. Having said that, I buy sacks of 99.9%.... You can buy a diluted liquid version at Home Depot that contains 8% copper for less than $20/pint.










Or to be on the safe side, you may want to just call a professional tree service to deal with it.


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