I recently planted a service berry tree in my backyard in may. It is abou 9’ high 4-5’ wide. It is in full sun, nursery had recommended I mix the loose soil in with the clay soil as we seem to have loose soil and further sown harder clay like soil… a package of recommended fertilizer was given. Tree seemed to be doing great until last few weeks where I’m noticing some type of holes in leaves and leaves turning yellow then drying up. I have more pictures as well….
Amelanchier (Serviceberry) trees are generally hardy in our region and have few insect predator’s that do lasting damage or cause demise. The leaf holes indicate you have a sucking/rasping/biting insect pest lurking so take a closer look for them. Once you have done this and identified the culprit, you will be able to determine a treatment – your local nursery should be able to help you with a product foliar spray should one be deemed necessary. Common serviceberry pests include aphids, scale, sawflies, leaf miners, spider mites and this year, Gypsy Moths have been a particular scourge.
Light infestations are more of an aesthetic nuisance rather than being detrimental to the overall tree health but you don’t want to let it get out of control when it can cause heavy defoliation and bloom reduction the following year. These trees are tremendously resilient but a regular schedule of feeding and watering will help maintain it’s overall health and enable it to withstand these sporadic infestations.
Also, leaf debris from this tree should be cleaned up and disposed of – do not put it in a backyard composter.
Hope this helps.
August 26, 2021