forest health panel - diseases - usfs and jim northum, afc

Arkansas Forestry AssociationOctober 1-3, 2013Little Rock, AR

Forest Health:What Arkansas

Forestland Owners

Should Know

Dale A. Starkey, Plant Pathologist

USDA Forest Service, Southern RegionState & Private Forestry, Forest Health

ProtectionPineville, Louisiana

Diseases

Arkansas Forestry Association ~ October 1-3, 2013 ~ Little Rock, AR

What Arkansas Forestland Owners Should Know

Forest disease realities

Diseases you are most likely to encounter that could affect your forest management plans

Diseases you will hear about, but are unlikely to encounter (maybe)

Monitoring tools and information sources


Forest Disease Realities

Most forest tree diseases won’t affect you in managing your forestland.

When they do show up, they can be anything from a very minor nuisance or no real concern (most often) to a catastrophe (seldom).

Very few effective or economical management or direct control treatments are available.

You do need to monitor the presence, status, and likely impact of forest pests in your general vicinity so as not to be caught unaware.


Diseases You Might Encounter

Southern pine diseases Fusiform rust Heterobasidion root disease Pitch canker

Hardwood diseases Oak decline


Fusiform Rust

Cronartium fusiforme

Slash and loblolly pines

Nursery and young plantations


Fusiform Rust

Loblolly is less affected than slash; shortleaf is immune; longleaf is pretty resistant

Rust hazard in southern AR is low to moderate

At age 5, determine if you have sufficient stocking

Mid-rotation, cankered trees should be removed during thinnings

Genetic improvement and nursery culture has greatly reduced disease severity and losses in the region

Rare in recent years to have catastrophic losses requiring stand replacement, although it can still happen


Heterobasidion Root Disease

Heterobasion irregulare; H. annosum, H. annosus, Fomes annosum, F. annosus

Disease of thinned pine plantations on deep, sandy soils (high-hazard)

Cut stump surfaces are the infection court

Spread is from dead stumps/roots to nearby living trees, usually creating small groups of dead trees, or infection centers

Mortality peaks about 3-5 years post-thinning

Powdered borax applied to the stumps immediately after cutting is preventive


Heterobasidion Root Disease


Pitch Canker

Fusarium circinatum; F. subglutinans, F. subglutinans f. sp. pini, F. moniliforme var. subglutinans, F. lateritium f. sp. pini

A resin-soaked canker, usually on shoots and small branches although it can occur on the bole

Generally kills the distal portion; wilting, reddening, browning of needles

Episodic, weather-related; a common problem in seed orchards, occasionally in nurseries, outplantings, and young, dense plantations

Initiated or exacerbated by wounding (eastern pine weevil), damage, high-N fertilization, plantings on agric. lands


Pitch Canker

Edward L. Barnard, FL DACS, Bugwood.org

Edward L. Barnard, FL DACS, Bugwood.org


Pitch Canker Thin stands as early as

possible

Avoid overfertilization

Avoid overplanting


500 Meters

Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services

Avoid chicken houses?


Oak Decline Episodic, multi-factor syndrome of oaks, hickories

Predisposed by older-age, overstocked (?), stands often on generally poorer, drier sites, on ridges or with southerly aspects

Triggered by acute drought or defoliation events (east-gypsy moth)

Exacerbated by contributing, secondary agents like borers (red oak borer) and Armillaria root disease, etc. Hypoxylon canker is frequently seen, but really contributes little to mortality

Red oaks more quickly and severely affected than white oaks or hickories

Bottomland and stands on higher-quality sites can be affected as well

Oak decline events may last 2 to several years

A useful rule-of-thumb – as stand age eclipses site index, vulnerability to oak decline increases


Oak Decline


OakDecline

Armillaria root disease

Red oak borer


Oak DeclineHypoxylon canker


Diseases You Hear About, but are Not Likely to Encounter

Southern pine diseases Pine decline

Leptographium root disease Root-feeding weevils and beetles

Hardwood diseases Oak wilt

A tree killer, but not so much in AR Sudden oak death

Still a CA disease; not in the South or East yet Pathogen is in ornamental nurseries in the South and

drainage water, but not native vegetation (since 2004) Thousand cankers disease of black walnut

This one could get here soon and could cause problems


Thousand Cankers Disease of Eastern Black Walnut

Walnut twig beetle (Pityophthoris juglandis) and fungal canker (Geosmithia morbida); both native to southwestern U.S. (on AZ and little walnut)

Wilting, dieback, mortality of eastern black walnut planted in western states like CA, CO, NM, UT

Recently shown up in several areas of the east Knoxville, TN (2010) – now in 6 counties Richmond, VA (2011) – now in 7 counties in 2 areas Bucks County, PA (2011) Butler County, OH (2013)

Great concern in native eastern black walnut growing regions

Damage is occurring, but the full impact and rate of spread, etc. is yet unknown



1.5-1.9 mm

Photos by Ned Tisserat,

Colorado St. Univ.



Curtis Utley, CO St. Univ., Bugwood.org

Knoxville, TN


Monitoring Tools and Information Sources

Forest Pest Conditions website http://foresthealth.fs.usda.gov/portal

Southern Region, Forest Health Protection http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/foresthealth/

Arkansas Forestry Commission website http://forestry.arkansas.gov/Pages/default.aspx

University of Arkansas Extension website http://www.arnatural.org/forestry.htm

Your local county forester or extension agent; AFC forest health specialist

http://foresthealth.fs.usda.gov/portal

http://foresthealth.fs.usda.gov/portal

http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/foresthealth/

http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/foresthealth/

http://forestry.arkansas.gov/Pages/default.aspx

http://forestry.arkansas.gov/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.arnatural.org/forestry.htm

http://www.arnatural.org/forestry.htm

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