Question
Like Karl (previous question on Jacaranda Tree), I too have Jacaranda Trees that are having trouble.  I live in Riverside, CA and have a number of multi-trunk Jacaranda which are about 12 years old.  We had two back to back nights below freezing (very rare) this past winter and I am wondering if this is what has caused this problem, or if the Gardner's pruned the trees too late.  The trees are still green below the bark, and they have tried to sprout some new leaves (no flowers and leaves don't look healthy)but are now starting to take on a burnt or blackish color on the branches.  Can the trees be saved?  Should I have the branches cut back?  Is there anything that I should be giving them?
Thanks,
Linda

Answer
I cannot be too specific, as I don't know the exact problems associated with your tree like its location, orientation, soil conditions, recent weather (like those nasty Santa Anas or recent freezes), local disease problems. etc.  

Even though my guess is the two freezing nights probably got them, I would still direct you to local help in the form of a tree expert.  There are two general sources for locating a reputable arborist in your area:

International Society of Arboriculture (ISA)
http://www.isa-arbor.com/findArborist/findarborist.aspx

or the

Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA)
http://128.241.193.252/index.aspx

Just a name in the phone book is a real gamble.  Today (Sunday) I was on a job-site where they hired a "guy in a pickup" and ALL of their trees were essentially *destroyed* by a crew that didn't have a clue about tree-trimming...Sad, because it is a commercial site with about 50 trees that were supposed to shade the parking lot in a few years!  Hacked down to stubby, little trunks. It was heart-breaking.  We'll see what the local city arborist says about in on Monday.

~Marc