- Author: Steven Swain
Sudden oak death (SOD) is a disease syndrome that has killed millions of native oak trees (Figure 1) along the west coast of the United States, from Big Sur in California up to Southern Oregon. The disease may involve several organisms, but its main driver is the fungus-like organism (known as water mold), Phytophthora ramorum. This plant pathogen is spread in the springtime by windy rainstorms. It infects the bark of oak trees, frequently creating bleeding trunk cankers that interfere with water uptake and sugar transport.
Death of SOD-infected trees can be accelerated by attacks from bark and ambrosia beetles. In the absence of beetle attacks, infected oaks may take years to die.
Many common...
In California, P. ramorum is primarily a leaf pathogen and thrives in coastal tanoak/redwood forests and oak woodlands. There are two categories of hosts for P. ramorum....
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Central Coast residents, officials, ranchers and representatives of conservation organizations came out in force to a November UC Cooperative Extension meeting sounding an alarm about the recent detection of Sudden Oak Death (SOD) in San Luis Obispo County trees, reported Kathe Tanner in the San Luis Obispo Tribune.
This was the first such gathering in this county since tests confirmed that the disease made its way south of Monterey County, according to event coordinator Mary Bianchi,...
Drought is decreasing but not defeating the pathogen that causes sudden oak death, according to a citizen science-assisted survey conducted this spring by a UC Agriculture and Natural Resources forest pathologist.
Results of the 2015 Sudden Oak Death Blitz survey reveal coastal mountain infestations in areas such as Big Sur (19% infection), the Santa Cruz Mountains (13% infection), and western Sonoma County (12% infection) remain high despite an overall decline in infection rates from 4.4% to 3.7% across California's 15 infested counties.
Sudden oak death (SOD) symptoms have been seen in Alameda, Contra Costa, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Solano,...
