Diseased tree

[Dale-Skey]

I have a young twisted Hazel tree that has become infected by some type of white insect and spider. The leaves have all curled up and the become brown and dry at the edges. I hav had some hazel cobs this year that seem to be fine. The tree is in a large pot in good sunlight. The pot also has a creeping thyme and varigated ivy growing in it , neither of these have been affected by the insect. Please canyo advise me on how to get rid of the pests and make the tree healthy again,

[Newt]

Hi Dale, Sounds like the spider might be spider mites. You can use an insecticidal soap to get rid of those. http://www.inra.fr/Internet/Produits/HYPPZ/IMAGES/7033192.jp g I'd need a better description of the white bugs to know what they are. Do they look like tufts of cotton or tiny flying bugs? If they fly when you shake the branches, that is white fly and the insecticidal soap will help with that as well. If they look like tufts of cotton, they are mealy bugs and you can use a Q-tip dipped in rubbing alcohol to remove them. You will probably need to do this 3 times every 5 to 10 days to get them all. Newt

[Newt]

Dale, I forgot to mention that stressed plants are more prone to pests. I suspect that your tree is rootbound and needs a larger pot. It is also fighting with the other plants in the pot for nutrients. Check to see if it's rootbound and if so, repot in a 2" larger pot and mix the new potting soil with 40% compost. Newt

[Dale-Skey]

Thanks will try all the solutions. The pot is actually quite large with pleanty of space, the other plants are small as they have only recently been introduced(teh insect problem was noticed just after planting the new plants.

[Newt]

Dale, Your plant was probably stressed before you repotted it. Best of luck! Newt

[Puzzlerbabe]

Tender loving care - sorry, I've got the same problem and I don't know how to use the computer properly. Hope someone has a good answer.