Find Your Ask the Expert: Magnolia Tree….leaves brown and dry
I live in PA. I have a Magnolia Tree that is about 5 years old. Last year it got a few flowers. However, this year it looks dead. All of the leaves are brown and hard. We put holly tone fertilizer in the ground. A few branches (on the lower half) of leaves turned really green after a week, but the rest still look dead and brown. The leaves were never spotted and I do not see anything growing on the trunk. Someone mentioned that there is some kind of worm that gets in the top of the tree trunk and kills the tree…is that a possibility? If so, what is that called? Thank you for any advice. Kelly
Plant Expert Reply:
They could be referring to scale or magnolia borers. If you had either there would be signs of it still on the tree in the form of things that looked liked raise bumps or oozing places on the stems or trunks.
Magnolias are susceptible to a few pests and diseases such as baterical leaf spot, magnolia boreres, spot anthracnose, canker, dieback, butt rot, powdery mildew, anthracnose, fungal spots, snails, weevils, scale insects, planthoppers, and thrips.
I believe in your case dieback is probably the culprit. Dieback is cuased by a freezing injury to the plant. This usually occurs when the winter has extreme flutuation in the winter temperatures and condition. The tips or tops of plants usually are effect by dieback. You will need to prune out all of the dead limbs and branches.
It could be a result of anthracnose, fungal or bacterial problems. However, normally fungua will present themselves with discoloration on the leaves, trunk or branches. Since you didn’t see any of these signs, dieback seems to be the isssue.
If it was insect damage, you would see evidence of the insects. Again since there is no evidence of insects, dieback seems to be the problem.
I would take one more careful look at all parts of the tree. If you see anything out of the ordinary, send me a picture and I will identify what it is. In the mean time, you will still need to trim out the dead. Cut branches back until you find live green wood.
Good luck and keep me posted.
My magnolia just this year has all brown dead leaves. No evidence of bumps, spots, ooze anything. Branches seem healthy and alive. The arborist here said wait for next year to decide what to do. Can I email you a photo of the tree? Any thoughts.
Robert,
Are the brown leaves all over the plant? Does the plant have any green leaves? If the plant has some green leaves, I would watch for new growth. If the new growth comes out fine, the plant probably had some type of temporary stress that caused the brown leaves.
I’ve planted at lease 3 magnolia and all have died. They just start losing all their leaves! My neighbor has a pretty one in her yard!😔 I was thinking it might be the soil!
Paula,
Without knowing your growing conditions, I can’t really say what might be wrong with the plants. It could be the soil, it could be the way you planted them or it could be how you have been watering and taking care of them after planting. I would discuss your problem with the nursery you purchased the magnolias from. They will be able to tell you how to plant and take care of the magnolias. If you have purchased the plants from a box store, you might want to try a a local garden center nursery instead. There employees will be able to tell you how they care for their plants and how you should care for yours.
I haven’t had to water we’ve had a lot of rain. The branches look good it’s just the leaves. Could it be a desease affecting the leaves?
Btw it wasn’t planted this time last year.
Hi Jamie,
Last year I bought a magnolia for my patio that I planted in a large planter. All last summer (2015) it grew green leaves, which dropped in the winter. Earlier this spring, the tree had some blooms that fell off . Since then it has only produced crinkled, brown dead leaves. The leaf pods are also completely dried out. I thought the issue may be slugs, so I added slug bait to the planter, with no improvement. I also moved the magnolia out of the area it was in earlier this spring (windy, but full sun) to an area that is mid-morning/ afternoon sun. I am baffled at what to do. The branches of the tree are also green, so it’s not dead yet. Please advise.
Paula,
How long have the trees been planted? If a tree is planted too deep and has received a lot of water the tree often will die. If the stems are still flexible and green and the leaves are the only issue Winter damage could be part of the problem. Not really sure.
DG
Where do you live. It is possible that the plant is suffering from winter damage.
I am in the mid Atlantic and am having the same issue with my butterfly magnolia. We had a very warm winter. When it flowered in the spring we got a hard freeze which killed the flowers. Now I have a few dead branches and brown leaves. The bottom of the truck bark peeled off too. We have had a ton of wet weather here too. No signs of bugs or chewed leaves. I pruned off the dead branches and wrapped the trunk in black tree cloth. Any other suggestions. I really don’t want to lose the tree. Thanks
Christina,
There really isn’t anything you can do – time will tell if the plant has been damaged beyond repair. AS for the peeling bark, trees do better if the wound is allowed to heal without intervention of paints or other materials. So I would remove the black tree cloth. I would make sure the tree is getting proper fertilizer and water. I would also look for insects attacking the tree and make sure they are eliminated. Good luck.
I live in South Georgia and have a native magnolia tree that has the ends of some branches dead. Each dead branch is approximately 1′ long with 5-7 leaves and they are covering the tree. Any ideS of what the issue could be and what to do?
Steve,
Have you noticed any funny growth on the tree? There are a few diseases that could be causing this problem. Leaf spot and leaf blight are the two most common diseases. Take a look at this article that explains these two diseases and see if you can identify the problem. Hope this information helps!
My magnolia tree ( 25years ) has a lot of small leaves this year and a lot of dead leaves , i pruned out the dead areas of the tree but this had not created much new growth with what i can see being dedicated to the lower half .
Will the tree tollerate a hard cut back by removing mosy of the canopy.
Mark,
Over pruning a magnolia tree, even on a young tree, can cause stress. With any magnolia, it is better to aim on the side of pruning too little than too much. Light trimming a magnolia tree is always preferable. Pruning mature trees can lead to potential disease issues because older trees are less likely to heal properly.
Hi Jamie Jamison ,
I have read through the comments here and think my magnolia tree might have dieback disease.
The tree only have a few , like 5ish, leaves that are green. I am willing to trim it back but you talked about not trimming it to much because of stressing the tree out to much, so should I just go for it,
Trimming it all at once? Also when should I do it ???
Hi Lori,
If you Magnolia does have dieback disease, you will want to trim the branches back until you see live, green wood. It is best to prune Magnolias right after they bloom. So you’ll want to trim it in the spring or summer. To make sure you don’t trim too much, a good rule to follow is to not remove more than a third of the tree.
I do have big magnolia tree and the TV coming up very very weak the leaves was yellow the dry branches everywhere I decide to trim the tree I dream maybe 60%.. of the branches I find lamps I didn’t see any evidence of any insects just I took one branch and I and I cut the dry big limp and I couldn’t believe my eyes there’s hundreds of thousands very very tiny little black ants basically you need to see the little buggers stronger glasses to see them everyone branch with the dead limp have thousands of the little ants I did this maybe month ago I live in Melbourne Australia and I use it already maybe 40 new little places of new leaves nice and green and fresh the most of the leaves slowly going into dark shiny green colour and the leaves becoming a soft the best thing I ever done cut even more what you have to in two Summers from now on they will be back nice green bushy and I hope lots of white flowers
Our 5 year old little gem magnolia tree has only a few green leaves left on the bottom few branches right up close to the tree. All other leaves have turned brown and died. Also alot of the limbs have died and we have trimmed all back that died. We love that tree and are very worried that it is going to die. We’ve cut it back alot and are wondering what happened to it and what else we could do to help save it? Our weather has been crazy, warm one day and freezing the next here in Northeast mississippi, we live in zone 7 and our weather has been crazy. Also last summer/fall was very dry. I haven’t watered it at all and thought it looked good until spring when I noticed how bad it looked. Branches did have new growth coming, but just turned brown and black and died. I scrapped along til I found green and cut away all dead branches. It looks terrible but still has those few green leaves along the bottom close to main tree. What should I do? Help !!!
We have a little gem magnolia tree that has only a few leaves around the bottom, close yo the trunk. All other leaves turned brown and died. Also we pruned back the dead on it and that was alot, maybe half. It’s around five years old and was growing and looking great. Only noticed deadness a few weeks ago and began to trim away dead. We have had a crazy winter here in Northeast mississippi. Weather has been up and down with Temps all winter and last summer and fall was very dry. Tree looked good until this spring and now seems to be dying from tips of branches back. Besides trimming is there anything we can do to save it. We haven’t watered it or anything. There’s a good chance of rain today. Need advice on what else to do and why you think is dying. There is no sign of bugs or disease. Looking forward to hearing from you.
Hi Tammie,
It’s possible your Magnolia could have sustained some frost damage from the temperatures this winter. Cutting back until you find new, green growth is the best thing you can do for that damage. It is also possible your tree is being affected by verticillium wilt. Since you have already pruned out all of the dead branches, you may try to fertilize your Magnolia.
Hope it gets to looking better!
I have a Tulip Tree which is exhibiting headless branches near the bottom and a few randomly up in the tree. I found little wart like lesions in the tree and, after research, found that it is Tulip Tree Scale. I know that Magnolias get this same disease and exhibit dieback. Will the dead looking branches ever leaf back out or are they gone for good. I’m so worried as this is a huge tree and the focal point if our front yard. Help!
Hi Sheila,
The first step will be to get rid of the scale infestation. Visit your local nursery for help on choosing a proper control agent. After you have the infestation under control, you will need trim back the dead looking branches. Trim them back until you see new growth. If you caught it in time, hopefully the scale did not cause too much damage.
Hi Jamie,
My magnolia didn’t come with a specific name. But it had two big white blooms a couple months after i transplanted it into a large planter on my balcony. It was happy with shiney dark green leaves which had a red furry underside, until the summer humidity and afternoon sun. The leaves started turning dark brown and falling off. I watered it every other day. Figuring it was getting burnt, I brought it inside to live behind colored glass and even a blind. It had a bunch of new light green growth so i thought that would remain while the old brown ones died off, but now the new green is turning brown and crumpling up. I have cut back on water because the pot feels wet but still doing twice a week or so. Any advice on how to stop the browning and make my magnolia happy again? Thank you! Liz in Miami Beach
Hi Liz,
It sounds like your Magnolia may have been suffering from over-watering rather than too much sun. Magnolias generally thrive in full to partial sun. If your pot still feels wet, or heavy, when you are ready to water, you might want to wait another day or two. Also, make sure your planter has good drainage. If the water is not draining well, your plant will develop root rot. If your pot is too large for your Magnolia, it can also develop root rot because the roots won’t be able to absorb all the water causing chronic “wet feet.”
Our butterfly magnolia is only two years old but has recently just shot up with these huge green leaves .
The branches these leaves are growing from have grown at a must faster time period than any other branch. Should we trim these back
If they are healthy, trimming them is only necessary if you are wanting to shape the tree. If this is the case, it is usually best to trim during the winter or early spring.
Like most plant novices, you are all concerned with the things you can see above ground. Remember that your tree doesn’t stop at the bottom of the trunk- there are roots in the soil, and they have to be happy for the rest of your tree to be happy. The majority of your problems sound like they are soil moisture and/or root health issues. Also, scales are insects, which are completely different from diseases (fungal, bacterial, and viral pathogens).
I have a three year old Little Gem Magnolia. South Louisiana is our location.
I found white lacy looking areas on the leaves, it will come off if you rub it with your finger. The tree looks rough, not healthy at all. There is one bud and it looks fine but the leaves look awful, spotty with this white lacy stuff on them.
I spray my Crepe Myrtles and Gardenias with Daconil once a year to keep away the sooty mildew. Would this treatment help? I’m ready to feed them, but I’d like to clear this up first, any suggestions?
Thanks
It sounds like your Magnolia has a powdery mildew infection. You can actually treat this organically with overhead sprinkling. Powdery mildew cannot survive in water. You want to water early enough in the day for the foliage to completely dry by sundown. You will also want to prune and destroy infected areas to reduce the number of spores. For chemical treatment, you can use an eradicate containing Myclobutanil.
Thank you so much for your reply. I’m going to take care of this today.
Thanks again,
Chloe
Hi there, I’m
Having a serious issue with my magnolias. One by one they are dying – it appears that the actual trunk and branches are drying up. Leaves turn yellow and fall off. It’s the fourth one in a row to be affected, there are four more in the row. All the others are luscious and green, with regular flowers.
No evidence of spores, insects or harsh temperatures that would be causing this.
I water regularly and use seasol. I live in Sydney Australia.
I can’t seem to upload photos but I’m sure this would help.
Natalie,
Due to the way the issue has spread from tree to tree, it makes me think the trees are being affected by some type of bacterial leaf spot. These diseases are spread by wind, water, and contaminated soil. If you can catch it early enough, normally you would just prune back the damaged leaves and branches and dispose of them. Once the trunk becomes infected, there’s not much more you can do. Make sure your trees are getting plenty of sun and air circulation, and avoid overhead watering.
I live in Michigan, I have two medium sized Magnolia trees that have flowered every year but this year one tree only has seven or eight flowers and the other on has two flowers. A couple years ago “True Green” knocked on my door and said those trees had scale and that they could treat the problem. I let them treat the trees for 1 1/2 years, and the trees showed no improvement so I cancelled the service. My neighbor has a row of large old pine trees and they all appear to be dying, presumably from scale. I presume the scale from those dying pine trees have gotten into my Magnolia trees. What should I do?
Dave, can you give me some more details on what is happening to your Magnolias? If the one tree just not flowering? Have you examined them for signs of disease or pest? All of these can help me provide you with a better course of action for your trees. You may also consult with your local extension service.
I have two large magnolia trees in the yard of the house I just bought. The people here before put weather guard and black mulch around the trees. I pulled that all off and the dirt was dry as a bone and hard. The tree is losing tons of leaves on a daily basis and a lot of the branches are bare or falling off. There are a couple of blooms. Besides tons of watering and fertilizer what else would you recommend I do? One of the trees does have new growth around the base of it.
Thanks for any input.
I need help with my magnolias. They always look like they are dying or maybe just holding on for dear life. I would love your input. Could I send photos?
You can send photos to jamie.woods@flowershopnetwork.com.
Lynn,
Getting your trees on a consistent watering schedule will be the best thing for them at this point. Also, cut back any dead or dying branches. Since the trees are in a somewhat unhealthy state, I would be sparing with the fertilizer for now until they get a little healthier. Putting new mulch down will help keep the moisture in once you start watering, but don’t pile it up to the trunk. Start about 6 inches away from the trunk, and keep it in a saucer shape.
I bought a little gem magnolia tree about 7 feet tall and it was beautiful and flowering when brought it home, I live inHouston , Texas. But shortly after planting it began to die really quickly. The leaves all dried out and brown, but some limbs still green. Can you tell me what happened or if I should buy new one? I’m not sure whether it will eventually come back to life.
Ursula,
It is hard to say for sure what is happening to your tree. It’s possible it was planted improperly and that is causing the problem. You should also look for signs of pests or disease. Watering is also important, especially for a young tree. Daily watering is recommended.
I moved a magnolia from one house to another. It was in full bloom with a few leaves but since I’ve moved it it seems as though it has died. I was told to remove the flowers as they take up a lot of energy. The leaves are brown but are still attached. I have looked for any new growth but there is none. Just wondering whether to leave it (it’s been a couple of months) or cut it back and see what happens. Any ideas that might help me as it has sentimental value. Thank you.
Jeanette,
For now, I would leave it. Cutting it back could cause even more transplant shock. I would make sure you are watering it well and give it time to adjust to its new home.
Hello. We have an approximately 20+ year old magnolia. This year we had it professionally trimmed before spring (along with other trees in our yard). When it finally did get leaves and flowers, they were only on one side of the tree. Arborist came back and said it looked like frost damage. They couldn’t find any evidence of disease or bugs. Now, only a month later, all of the leaves on two branches that were previously healthy have completely died and the last branch isn’t looking promising. We had the tree trimmed once before, approximately five years ago. This year we had it trimmed and fertilized. Is there any hope for this tree?
Michelle,
If it has had frost damage, you will need to cut it back until you see healthy tissue. It may be a matter of wait and see.
Hello, I also have magnolias, 4 small maybe 1 1/2 ft tall saucer trees. I had leaves drying and so after reading ur information I checked them and they had little black spot insects. I went ahead and removed them all from the leaves. Should I cut back the dry leaves or leave it alone to heal? Thank you for taking the time to answer all our questions. God bless.
It should be fine to remove the dry leaves.
Magnolia tree is about 6yrs old it bloomed in the early part of the summer then I noticed the leaves turned brown and fell off i put some miracle gro on it. now it’s Oct here in Texas but still warm and the tree is still in the same condition what should i do ?
Please help. Black buds in fall on midwestern magnolia tree.
Here’s something that you can try…Magnolia trees require a neutral to slightly acidic soil, otherwise, the growth process can slow down or be weakened. To fix this, you can get some acidic, slow-release fertilizer from your local garden center. Just ask what are the best options available :)
I’ve seen a few saucer magnolia trees here in So CAL, and they all look terrible. From diebacks to browning leaves. They just dont look like healthy trees. It’s a beautiful tree when healthy, but all of them look sickly.
I purchased 3 bar root trees from arbor foundation and 2 have died 1 is barely surviving.
If must be the alkaline soil here in CA along with the hot sun. Zone 10 here.