Cankers on Pine

Pathogen Type

Fungal Disease

Scientific Name

Botryosphaeria spp. and other canker fungi

Frequency

Severity

Hosts

All cankers are diseases of stressed trees.

Symptoms

Several cankers cause the tree to bleed heavily, but others listed cause little if any sap to occur on the outer bark. All cause internal discoloration. Rainy wet weather helps in the spread of the diseases. See also "Sphaeropsis tip blight" and "Cytospora canker of Spruce". Damage from various insects may also cause symptoms very similar to fungal cankers.

Cycle

Life cycles vary with the fungal pathogen.

Management

Keep the pine growing well and minimize long-term stress factors on the plant. Prune out dead and dying limbs, water properly during droughts and feed in the fall when most deciduous trees are defoliating.

Credit

James E Schuster, retired Extension Specialist, Horticulture & Plant Pathology,University of Illinois

PathogenID

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