I have a large Crimson King (30yrs) that appears to have verticulum. One of the large branches is losing all of its leaves and they are dying off. Is there any way to treat for this? Dont want to lose tree. Or could this be from dry weather we experienced several weeks ago. Also i have a sugar maple and a white birch in the same front yard. ARe these trees suscptible to this fungus.

Thanks

Greetings Corey,

First of all, I would recommend that you verify your verticillium diagnosis with the University of Illinois Plant Clinic http://plantclinic.cropsci.uiuc.edu/

According to most plant pathologists, sanitation and prevention is really your only method of recourse - if and when a positive diagnosis is returned. Based on what I've been able to find, there really are no fungicides available for treatment of verticillium wilt (a persistent, soil-borne fungus). Thus, prune out dead branches as they become apparent - remove severely infected trees. Remember to sterilize pruning tools between pruning cuts. Additional control measures include maintaining adequate soil moisture and fertility around your trees.

Unfortunately, your sugar maple is susceptible to verticillium wilt; however, your white birch should be fine.

Please refer to the following plant report on verticillium wilt from the University of Illinois for more detail and specifics:

http://web.aces.uiuc.edu/vista/pdf_pubs/VERTWILT.PDF

Hi, my crimson king maple also has been diagnosed as having maple wilt. Are its leaves safe to throw into the compost?