Is My Elm Dying? A Differential Diagnosis Guide

A wilting, yellowing elm is not necessarily a Dutch Elm Disease case. At least six other conditions produce strikingly similar symptoms, and treating an elm for the wrong problem wastes money and may make things worse. This guide walks through how to distinguish Dutch Elm Disease from its common lookalikes.

When in doubt, get a professional diagnosis

When an elm shows serious decline, professional inspection by a certified arborist or a state extension service is the appropriate next step. Visual symptom matching is the starting point, not the finish line. Lab confirmation through wood sample culture or PCR is the only definitive way to confirm Dutch Elm Disease. See Who Should I Contact if I See Dutch Elm Disease?.

The six conditions that mimic Dutch Elm Disease

Condition | Quick distinguishing feature
Elm yellows | Whole-tree yellowing all at once; wintergreen smell from inner bark
Verticillium wilt | Olive-green to greenish vascular streaking; affects many tree species, not just elms
Bacterial leaf scorch | Marginal leaf browning with yellow halo; chronic, slow decline over years
Elm anthracnose | Black spots and blotches on leaves; worst in cool wet springs
Drought stress | Whole-tree symptoms tied to weather; vascular tissue is clean
Herbicide injury | Twisted, cupped, or strap-shaped leaves; pattern matches recent application

For an interactive walkthrough, try the Dutch Elm Disease Symptom Checker.

What Dutch Elm Disease actually looks like

Classic DED symptoms (revisit What Are the Symptoms of Dutch Elm Disease?):

Flagging: a single branch or section of canopy wilts and yellows while the rest of the tree appears healthy

Vascular streaking: when bark is peeled back from a wilting branch, chocolate-brown to black streaks are visible in the outermost wood (current year's xylem)

Branch-by-branch progression: symptoms march from the initial branch outward over weeks to months

Beetle galleries: small (1–3mm) round exit holes in bark, with characteristic radiating gallery patterns underneath

Timing: symptoms typically first visible from late spring through midsummer

What DED does not look like:

Whole-tree symptoms appearing simultaneously (that's elm yellows, drought, or root damage)

Leaf-edge browning with green centers (bacterial leaf scorch)

Black spots on leaves (anthracnose)

Twisted or cupped leaves (herbicide injury)

Olive-green vascular discoloration (Verticillium wilt)

Quick differential matrix

Symptom | DED | Elm yellows | Verticillium | Leaf scorch | Anthracnose | Drought | Herbicide
Flagging (single branch) | ✓✓✓ | — | ✓ | — | — | partial | —
Whole-tree symptoms | rare | ✓✓✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (leaves) | ✓✓✓ | ✓
Brown vascular streaking | ✓✓✓ | — | olive | — | — | — | —
Marginal leaf browning | — | — | — | ✓✓✓ | — | ✓ | —
Leaf spots/blotches | — | — | — | — | ✓✓✓ | — | —
Twisted/cupped leaves | — | — | — | — | — | — | ✓✓✓
Wintergreen smell (bark) | — | ✓✓✓ | — | — | — | — | —
Beetle exit holes | ✓ | — | — | — | — | — | —
Affects non-elm trees | — | — | ✓✓✓ | ✓ | — | ✓ | ✓

When to test

Lab confirmation is worth the cost when:

Expensive fungicide treatment ($500–2000+) is being considered on a high-value tree

The diagnosis affects whether to remove a tree

The case is the first suspected DED in the immediate area

Insurance, legal, or municipal disputes depend on confirmation

Symptoms are atypical or overlap with multiple conditions

Sample collection involves cutting a wilting branch (1–2 inches diameter), keeping it cool and damp, and shipping it within 48 hours to a state plant diagnostic lab. Most universities operate these labs; costs typically range from $20 to $50 per sample.

Cluster pages

Elm Yellows vs Dutch Elm Disease

Verticillium Wilt vs Dutch Elm Disease

Bacterial Leaf Scorch vs Dutch Elm Disease

Elm Anthracnose vs Dutch Elm Disease

Drought Stress vs Dutch Elm Disease

Herbicide Injury vs Dutch Elm Disease

Dutch Elm Disease Symptom Checker

References

Sinclair, W. A., & Lyon, H. H. (2005). Diseases of Trees and Shrubs (2nd ed.). Cornell University Press.

Stipes, R. J., & Campana, R. J. (Eds.) (1981). Compendium of Elm Diseases. American Phytopathological Society.

USDA Forest Service. How to identify and manage Dutch elm disease (NA-PR-07-98).

Gould, A. B., & Lashomb, J. H. (2007). "Bacterial leaf scorch of shade trees." APSnet Features. American Phytopathological Society.