Trees, Shrubs and Conifers: Magnolia Tree Troubleshooting, 1 by SkeptikSharon

SkeptikSharon wrote:
Hi All,

I have what I believe is a Southern Magnolia Tree. It is huge. It was here when we bought the house (recently), and this tree and a lot of the yard has essentially been neglected for quite a long time.

I have noticed what I believe to be leaf spot, which does not overly concern me, as the best method I've read for controlling that is good cleanup (the gardeners do this on a weekly basis). However, I want to make sure there is nothing else going on with this tree that could be making that worse or could be more serious than that. I have noticed several spots on the trunk of the tree where the bark appears to be pulling away and falling off. There are also areas toward the base of the tree where the roots start to spread that do not appear ideal. However, I am not at all sure whether this is normal for a magnolia or not.

The tree does not get watered by the sprinkler system, though it may still pick up that moisture underground from the roots. I believe, especially with 110 degree summer coming up, that I need to start doing a deep water on it at least once a week. The tree has also not been fertilized since I've been here and I do not know if anyone did that for all the years it's been there. Is a fertilizer treatment necessary?

This first picture is some of the leaf spotting.