Had a 7’ Dawn Redwood delivered from a nursery this week and noticed right away some very minor discoloration on the leaves. It looked a lot like scorch at first, so I wasn’t too concerned as that’s easy enough to deal with, but it has advanced a bit and now I’m worried it’s rust. Can anyone take a gander at the attached photo and let me know what you all think? If it is rust, any advice? I’ve already isolated it, and I know not to let water drip through the leaves, and to completely destroy any material I remove, but I’ve also seen some mixed reviews on fungicides. Any advice from the more experienced members would be appreciated!
Yup, that looks fungal.
Good call on separating it from other plants.
You can’t eradicate it right now, what’s infected will stay infected throughout the year. What you could do is protect the new growth and stop the spread.
I’d spray it now and a month later to protect new growth, then in fall after leafdrop and again in spring when buds start to move.
As to with what, I don’t have a ton of experience with redwood, depending on what you have available in your area, maybe a copper based fungicide. That usually takes care of most fungus issues.
Maybe someone will chime in with something specific to use.
Cheers!
Thanks @Kenez! Couldn’t find anyone else who knew what to use either, but I was able to get a copper based spray.
This must be fungal as, after spraying last week, it seems like the tree has responded well with a lot of it clearing up. Will spray again next month and keep my fingers crossed!
