What's eating my Aspen trees?
- Thread starter MaxPower
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That looks more broken than eaten to me. But we have no aspen here. Usually you would find frass and eggs near a food source as well.
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American Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides), in the Willow Family (Salicaceae), are native to much of the higher altitudes and latitudes of North America. Other similar species of Aspen are native to Eurasia. At lower latitudes, they are usually found above 5000 feet, though in more northerly regions they do often occur at lower altitude.
The leaf pictured my be showing some type of fungal leaf spot or anthracnose disease, though some of the damage could be due to mechanical injury during planting. Some of the leaves in the background do have injuries suggestive of chewing insects. It can be helpful to go out after dark with a flashlight and see if any night-feeding insects are present.
These trees were planted in Summer. As Aspen are sensitive to high temperatures, they may be stressed, especially if it was warmer than where they had been growing previously. This stress might lessen in subsequent years if the trees establish full root systems and ample water is available
American Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides), in the Willow Family (Salicaceae), are native to much of the higher altitudes and latitudes of North America. Other similar species of Aspen are native to Eurasia. At lower latitudes, they are usually found above 5000 feet, though in more northerly regions they do often occur at lower altitude.
The leaf pictured my be showing some type of fungal leaf spot or anthracnose disease, though some of the damage could be due to mechanical injury during planting. Some of the leaves in the background do have injuries suggestive of chewing insects. It can be helpful to go out after dark with a flashlight and see if any night-feeding insects are present.
These trees were planted in Summer. As Aspen are sensitive to high temperatures, they may be stressed, especially if it was warmer than where they had been growing previously. This stress might lessen in subsequent years if the trees establish full root systems and ample water is available