The bark on Ash tre or Chitalpa is Splitting. What might cause this? I am worried it is termites. I live in southwest where it very hot and we have very little moisture. The tree is in a rock landscaped area far from moisture. The bark is splitting but is not brittle at all. THe tree is getting ready to bloom and the leaves have brown spots. There doesn't appear to be any tunnels or saw dust just splitting on various locations on the tree.

The symptoms you describe sound like lack of moisture, not termites. How long has this tree been in the landscaped area and how old was it when you planted it ? Could be the tap root is damaged, was damaged and is too far from a water source. Could be not the right tree for this type of application.

Depends on what tree your talking about. Ash and Chitalpa are different. If it's Chitalpa it's a very fast growing tree and is known to have bark splits because of that. Do this Google search and read some of the postings there that may help you.

Chitalpa bark splitting