Hi Cara, what species of tree is this? There are a lot of reasons for topkill in trees but we are looking specifically for topkill in true ash (Fraxinus) and oak (Quercus). While I don't think this is either of those species, the closest would be ash and you can determine if it's a match with the ID guide here: https://oregon-eab-geo.hub.arcgis.com/pages/identify.

You can also send another image and we can try to ID it for you. We'd need to see something closer up, perhaps of lower in the crown that shows branching and leaves.

If it's neither of those species I would proceed with contacting an ISA-certified arborist (https://www.treesaregood.org/findanarborist) to determine how to proceed.

Christine Buhl
Sept. 22, 2025, 1:39 a.m.