Xtremehorticulture

Xtremehorticulture of the Desert

Chinaberry Wind Damage

Leave a Comment / chinaberry, Texas Umbrella Tree /

Q. Our Chinaberry tree broke off after the winds a few days ago. I saw all this dark wood inside the tree and it was dried out. This tree has withstood way stronger winds than what we just had which concerns me. Is this anything to be concerned about? A. The inside of any tree, including Chinaberry or Texas Umbrella tree, is virtually dead regardless whether it is healthy or not. This dead area is called the “heartwood” of the tree. The only living part of its trunk is a small cylinder of wood surrounding the heartwood and just under the bark. This is called the “sapwood”. Heartwood is darker in color than sapwood. Because it is dead, heartwood can rot without damaging the sapwood. This rotting of the heartwood can leave the tree hollow on the inside. But rotting of the heartwood can also make the tree weaker and prone to breakage during strong winds. As a tree gets bigger it grows in two ways; it grows taller and limbs become longer called primary growth. It also gets “fatter” or bigger in diameter. This growth is called secondary growth. Secondary growth is responsible for sapwood remaining just under the bark as the tree gets “fatter”. As sapwood grows outward it leaves behind the dead heartwood in its interior. The tree can live without its heartwood but it cannot live without its sapwood. But loss of heartwood can leave the tree weakened. If the tree can cause damage when it breaks, then consider removing it.  The “dryness” of the wood may be “dry rot” as the heartwood is disappearing or rotting away. Frequently interior rotting of the tree is accompanied by soft growths attached to the trunk. These are a type of mushroom called “bracket fungi” or conks and are strong indicators that some form of rotting is occurring. If you want to keep the tree strong, make sure it receives enough water and fertilize it once a year. If it does not, the tree becomes weaker and much easier to damage during strong winds.  

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Chinaberry Damage Probably Carpenter Bee, Not Borers

Leave a Comment / brittle, limb breakage, messy, Neem, persian lilac, poisonous, Texas Umbrella Tree /

Q. I have a 25 year old Chinaberry tree that I like because it has aromatic flowers in the spring but I also hate it because it is messy. Parts of the tree recently broke from the wind. There were still lots of leaves on the tree but the inside was dry and dead. How long do these trees live and is what I described normal? A. Chinaberry is also called Persian Lilac and here in the United States we sometimes call it the Texas Umbrella Tree. I like the tree because of its form, fragrant flowering and fruit clusters but many local horticulturists do not. Carpenter bee damage to dead palm frond remnants. Note the perfectly round holes the size of a quarter or about 2cm in diameter.             The leaves and fruit can be poisonous to humans but not to birds. It is a native to parts of Asia where the leaves and fruit have been used as a natural repellent of pests when drying food. The poisonous chemicals inside leaves and fruit are related to the natural pesticide Neem. The tree is a fairly close relative of the Neem tree.             Just like you said, it can be messy and the wood is brittle and can break easily in the wind. For these reasons, they do not last very long in landscapes.             The inside of any older tree is all dead wood. It is just the outside cylinder which is alive. Insects that tunnel or build homes in dead wood can cause damage to the tree if they get access to the inside. Wood rotting fungi however is seldom a problem since the wood resists decay. It is also a relative of teak and the wood is actually very pretty.             Boring insects feed on the living parts of the tree, not the dead parts. However insects such as termites and carpenter bees can utilize the dead wood inside the tree if they can get in there. If they do get in they can weaken the tree further where it will fail in strong winds.             I have never seen boring insects in this tree but I have seen Carpenter Bee damage to the interior dead wood. If you look closely I would suspect you’ll find large holes in the interior wood about the size of a nickel. This is a good sign Carpenter Bees were actively nesting in there.             You are probably better off replacing the tree with something else.

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