Keep an eye on your Pines

Pine wilt is a common disease that causes browning and death of pines, especially Scotch pine. Austrian, mugo, red, jack, and white pine may also be affected.

Pine wilt disease is caused by tiny worms called “pinewood nematodes” and beetles called “sawyers” that work together resulting in a disease that rapidly discolors and kills pine trees. The nematode is introduced into pines as the pine sawyer beetles feed or lay eggs. Eggs are laid in egg niches

chewed by the females. When the beetle feeds on a healthy tree or chews the egg niches, the nematodes leave the beetle and enter the tree through the wounds. The nematodes reproduce rapidly in resin canals and go from egg to adult in 5 days with many eggs per nematode. They then spread rapidly and clog the water transport system of the pines, thus causing disruption of water movement throughout the tree.

When not feeding on the plant cells, the nematodes feed on fungi present within the wood. Bark beetles carry blue-stain fungi to trees, and these fungi, along with other wood-inhabiting fungi, colonize the tree after it is weakened or killed. Research indicates that there is an increase in nematode reproduction when a blue-stain fungus is the food source for the nematode.

*MOST IMPORTANT*   Timing is Everything

If you notice even parts of one branch turning brown,  please contact us!  Our treatment system is preventative and can save your trees and reduce pine wilt risk.

It is important to remove trees in winter or early spring before sawyers emerge and threaten the spread of the disease. Once the tree has been removed, our arborists can recommend non-susceptible trees to plant in their place. Be sure to provide new and existing pine trees with adequate water and fertilizer to help improve their vitality against potential infection.