The swelling buds on my trees tell me it’s the time of year to continue dormant treatments. Yesterday, I applied a 5% lime sulfur solution (6.5 oz/gallon) to all my trees that lost their leaves. This year, I sprayed my black pine trees as well - I’ll let you know how they do. I’ll reapply several times until bud break. In Houston, with our warm and wet springs, we have the perfect breeding grounds for fungal issues, especially on maple trees. Here’s a short video from one of Daisaku Nomoto’s apprentices demonstrating the process they undertake in their garden (the link was sent to me by Jonas Dupuich). They have an extra step in which they apply an event more concentrated solution to the trunk. I think this might be for asthetic reasons in order to create a white trunk on their maples, but I’ve written a note to Daisaku to be sure.
Scott