Ailing Walnut Tree

Hi,

We have a walnut tree in the garden which we think is around 25 years old and has been fruiting pretty well for the last 4 or 5 years.

This year though the leaves which were coming in spring have wilted and died.

I took a branch off and this is what it looks like inside with the brown patch.



And the other end has a hole in the middle. Most of the twigs are branches are like that.



Can anyone help please? I'm a newbie really and haven't seen anything like this before. I'm wondering what the brown patch is and if the tree is dead or dying?

Thanks in advance.

 

A picture of the tree would help as would a picture of the outside of a branch.

 

Silver leaf?

 

Could be a range of things inc. coral spot fungus or bacterial canker. Photos of the tree, bark and leaves as well as any fungal fruiting bodies or external growths may help in identifying the issue.

 

Sorry for the delay - a couple more pictures.

Thanks for the input so far.

 

It looks dead to me.

 

Those holes inside the branches.... Could be one of the bugs - tree pests.

 

Yeah, that's a gonner. Hard to tell from the photos what the exact reason is, but as the tree part above ground looks pretty decent from what I can tell, I would suggest there's been an issue below ground. If the bark around the base of the tree begins to shed and there are black 'bootlaces' beneath it then you've got a major problem. Otherwise it could be a number of issues inc. drought, soil compaction or nutrient deficiency.

 

Cheers for the answers. I’d kind of thought it was dead but couldn’t work out why. Also it looked great in spring but March - May were very dry so perhaps that’s done it.

It is very dry down there and the soil is pretty compacted too so that’s likely the reason.

I’ll keep an eye for bootlaces. When you say a serious problem do you mean in the soil generally?

 

One of the main culprits for killing of trees quickly is Honey fungus. Once in the soil it can quickly attack other things close by. It sounds to me that it's more likely to be a soil water availability problem that has affected your tree.