White stuff on oak tree in north LA (dog, look, Louisiana)

[Lazyreddog]

My very old and very large oak tree has white discoloring coming Down the trunk. Tree is in north west Louisiana. Do I need a tree doctor? Or is this something I can treat myself?
I have a photo but don’t know how to add photos.

[fisheye]

Originally Posted by Lazyreddog

My very old and very large oak tree has white discoloring coming Down the trunk. Tree is in north west Louisiana. Do I need a tree doctor? Or is this something I can treat myself?
I have a photo but don’t know how to add photos.

You should try the garden forum. That is more helpful on landscaping and trees. Of course there are posters on the Nature threads that are also great gardeners.

We all had problems when we first started posting about where to post. Don't let it discourage you and welcome to City-Data!

PS The easiest way to post pictures is to go to your home page by clicking on your avatar name and creating an album. Then on the bottom of your album page there is an upload pictures button to hit. After you have pictures uploaded to your CD page album you can click on the picture to make it full size and you will see a URL and a BB code at the bottom. Highlight and copy the BB code. Then when you post you can hit the little icon that looks like a mountain over top of where you are typing. That will allow you to paste that 'BB' code and you should be all set.

[Katie1]

https://www.bing.com/search?q=white+...8deacb08ec44de

Powdery mildew is a common disease that appears as a white powdery substance on a tree leaf surface. The powdery appearance comes from millions of tiny fungal spores, which are spread in air currents to cause new infections.

Call the Tree Doctor Before it Spreads!

[Zoisite]

Originally Posted by Lazyreddog

My very old and very large oak tree has white discoloring coming Down the trunk. Tree is in north west Louisiana. Do I need a tree doctor? Or is this something I can treat myself?
I have a photo but don’t know how to add photos.

The forum is set up so that new members need to make 5 to 10 posts before they can start posting pictures or links to other websites. This is to prevent 'bots' or new trolls from posting spam, advertising, porn pictures and the like as soon as they sign up as members.

A picture or two of your tree's problem really is important for everyone to be able to view since it might be something harmless and benign, such as completely harmless, healthy white lichen for example (which is very common and is what I suspect your oak might have on its bark). So I'd suggest you make just a few more posts either here or in other parts of the forum and then when you know you're able to post links to other websites, then post back to this thread or post an all new thread in the Garden forum with your pictures of your oak.

Meanwhile, take a look at all the pictures at this link and see if the white stuff on your tree looks like any of the various types of white lichens that are growing on the bark of these trees: https://www.bing.com/images/search?q...mageBasicHover

If you can ID it from any of the above photos as being white lichen then don't worry about it, it's harmless, common and does not need any kind of treatment. Lichens are actually a good sign of a healthy growing environment.

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