White pine under attack

[drobertson]

We lost many of our white pine due to storms, and early on due to tree thief's, but now it appears that these bores are at it in the pine now. 

 
This is a section off a lower limb, sorry for the focus, I selected the wrong image, 

[jrose1970]

Boy, I hate that. I wonder where you could find a map of their infestation.

[drobertson]

Not sure on a map, but pretty sure they cover most of the southeast, including Texas. Mostly in SYP but these critters have got into the white pine, Nematodes, I believe they are called,,

[Phorester]

Borers such as this one usually attack only dead or dying trees or parts of trees. Hard to tell from the photo, but it looks as if this branch has blue stain.  This is from a bacterial infection due to the tree or maybe just the lower branches being under stress and dying.

I think the primary problem of this tree is not this borer, but something that is weakening the tree to the point where it is developing blue stain and is now attracting the borer. This could be anything from soil conditions to overcrowding to environmental stress.

Pictures of the whole tree and the site where they are growing, might give us some more info to go on.

It's amazing that you were able to cut this branch exactly where the borer is without damaging either the tunnel or the borer itself.

[drobertson]

Here is a few pics of the what was two hundred pines Dad and I planted in 87' around the 4 acre field.  Keep in mind the deer took their share early on, the Christmas tree poachers,  but the storm of 09'  iced the cake, viewing my profile site will show the damage that began on the corner of the black top and then progressed northeast.


  

 
these last two are showing signs of needle cast, but have for years, maybe due to the storm


  

  

  

 
and a view of the limbs I took off,  I fell the one on the left, slight bluing at the stump, the other I have to time, it will go on the gravel road,

[Phorester]

The extra pics help some.  My two cents; The limb in your first posting came from a dead tree.  I suspect the borer you are seeing is some sort of decomposing insect attracted to dead wood. It will be no problem for your living pine trees.

Being in MO, you might have different problems than in VA, but if these trees were here, I'd guess one of three problems (a tree could have some or all of them):  One is Procerum root decline.  Slice into the stump of the yellowing trees (not the dead ones) with an ax right above the ground.  Procerum will cause a dark staining of the cambium layer just underneath the outer bark. Dead trees will show a similar stain, but that's the aforementioned blue stain.

Second is a bark beetle called pityogenes.  (pit - ee-ah-gee-nees).  As I understand this bug, it has no common name that I know of.  It attacks only white pine in VA.  It is similiar to southern pine bark beetle, but SPB doesn't attack white pine, and pityogenes doesn't attack southern pines. White pines infested with this beetle will have tiny dark spots about 1/8" - 1/4" diameter on the trunk.  They look like little flat wet spots, and it is sap oozing from the entrance holes made by the beetle. I've gouged into these with a pocket knife and found the beetle underneath. It's tiny and hard to spot, about 1/16" long, very black.

Third problem could simply be a decline of some of the trees along these rows due to spots of poor soil drainage, compaction, etc.  Here in VA, white pine is pretty particular about where it is planted. A lot of places are off-site for this species, but it doesn't show until the trees are "teenagers" or older.

Unfortunately, nothing can be done to cure any of these problems if they are already present.  But the pityogenes and procerum can spread to other trees in the rows. I'd recommend cutting down the dead and yellowing trees and burning them ASAP. Today would be a good time...... The fire doesn't have to consume the entire tree, just burn the outer bark off the trunks and you've got it.   These problems could eventually take out all of these trees over a period of many years, even though the rest of the trees in the pictures look pretty good now.

Again, my two cents from Virginia.  A forester from your area might have better ideas.

[drobertson]

thanks very much, and the burning  has been penciled in for sure, thanks for the insight, good info for sure,,

[Phorester]

Forgot one thing........ the Procerum root decline is in the root system (hence the name  ;D) and it can spread from the yellowing trees to the trees next to them by root grafts.

So the yellowing trees need to be pulled out with as much of the root system as possible, not just cut off. Unfortunately by the time  a tree dies from this disease, it's too late to protect the neighboring trees. So the dead trees can just be cut off.

[Peter Drouin]

When I see trees on my land in trouble they get cut and made into lumber before they go to far. We have W Pine and hemlock that get sick sometimes. ;D

[SwampDonkey]

Up here blister rust and weevils are so bad that white pine isn't bothered with as far as reforestation, other than the nurseries stick a white pine here and there in their containerized seedlings. And if they don't get them, there's the moose that use them for scratching posts.  ;D :D

We get ambrosia here in dead pine, that make pin hole sized gallery holes that get infected with fungus they carry. Essentially they farm the stuff. :D