Monthly Archives: July 2018

A wise old man once made a statement that trees could talk. How could that be? Well, the answer is “of course.” All you must do is listen.

Listen: To the swaying branch of a tree, listen carefully.
Listen: To the leaves clapping their hands with laughter and delight.
Listen: As the trees groan to the weight of their limbs stretching in the early morning sun.
Listen: To the acorns falling to the earth, bouncing limb by limb as they fall gleefully until they rest peacefully on the ground.
Listen: As the limbs rub together like a fine violin and its bow.
Listen: As the sweet dew drops of water splash in freefall of symphony between leaves and branches making a joyous melody.
Listen: When birds land safely inside the limbs and branches and shout out to their friends “it’s safe to build our homes here and raise our families.”
Listen: As animals like trapeze artist swing branch to branch laughing as they play animal games.
Listen: As the moon speaks thru the trees all is well, and you can rest in the shade and darkness.
Listen: As the wind is told to slow down there are children at play in my branches.
Listen: As the sun provides a warm light to grow the young and old trees, and the crackle of new buds and leaves sound a graceful noise.

Caring for trees is more than one size fits all approach. At Fannin Tree Farm, we are professional soil and plant scientist as well as Certified Arborist. In Fall of 2018, we are rolling out our Thrive Program – Advance.

The new Advance program is a holistic approach that is unique to your tree and shrub needs. This will allow us to develop a program that is tailored toward your specific needs and aesthetic goals. This program exceeds the standards of arboriculture (ANSI A300) and the Best Management Practices (BMPs).

We are utilizing an Integrated Pest Management approach to plant healthcare. Our program will require a full assessment by our professionals. This includes soil sampling and a condition assessment of the trees and shrubs. A prescription for proactive care will be provided after the assessment. Our team maintains photographic and field assessment records.

Quarterly assessments are provided by our arborist. We maintain records for all treatments and closely review prior to an arborist visiting your property. Your program will include necessary treatments to prevent infections for common pest and diseases.

During the quarterly assessment, a health care report card is provided to the client. Our tree service coordinator will contact you to setup these quarterly assessments.

Thrive Program – Advance

• Plant Pest and Disease Preventative Care Management
• Quarterly Assessments and Recommendations
• Winter Dormant Oil

Fannin Tree Farm is the largest tree contractor in the Dallas Fort Worth. We have been a staple in the community for over 40-years. Our tree care service team is ready to advance appropriate arboricultural care for the Dallas-Fort Worth and surrounding cities.

Learn more about the Thrive Tree Program or to request a quote. Call us today at 972-747-9233 and ask to setup a consultation with our Certified Tree Care Team!

Less than a century ago, the Dallas-Fort Worth area, was primarily agricultural land. This land was used to grow crops, hay, and raising cattle. The native tree species were much more limited. Now the land is used much differently. The old family farms are being developed into new shopping centers, homes, and other urban developments. The land use has changed and so has the landscape.

The DFW has added many new plant species to the pallet. As a landscape industry, we have integrated many plant species that have adapted to our area and climate. Some species were more successful than others. After many years of trial and error, plant diseases have found many suitable host species.

As new plant species were brought into our area, plant pathogens, whether native or not, have found their way in to our landscape as well. One disease that has over 2,300 host species (1,800 dicots), is known as, ‘Phymatotrichopsis omnivora’ (also referred to as, Cotton Root Rot, Texas Root Rot and Ozonia Root Rot). This is a soilborne fungus that lay dormant in the soil for many years.

As you may guess, cotton, a common crop that is grown in North Texas is very susceptible to this disease. Trees that are infected with Cotton Root Rot should be removed and only planted with tolerant or resistant plant species. Here’s a link to an online publication from Texas A&M University of Tolerant Plant Species: https://aggiehorticulture.tamu.edu/archives/parsons/publications/cottonrootrot/cotton.html

Diagnosis is very easy during the early and mid-summer. As the soil temperature exceeds 82 degrees, Fahrenheit, which is usually in the spring and early summer, the disease will develop in the plant. The first symptoms are wilting, followed by death. Often smaller plants are quickly killed by this disease. While larger trees may require more time for the disease to terminate the tree.

As a diagnostician, we are looking for key symptoms and signs out in the field. Common species, like Lace Bark Elms are very commonly killed by this disease. During the early summer, we look for fungal mats that develop on top of the soil as a key indicator that the pathogen is present. It has been demonstrated in research that the fungal mat does not spread the spores, so don’t worry about spreading this pathogen if you walk through a fungal mat or two.