Warm weather seems to be keeping SOD out of the Salinas Valley, but it is having a deadly effect on the surrounding forests.
“The organism has a really significant impact on our forests,” said Matteo Garbelotto, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at UC Berkeley. He said that adult tanoaks – an evergreen species closely related to oaks – are almost entirely wiped out in some areas.
To help prevent the spread of sudden oak death, people visiting invested areas should not remove leaves or branches and should clean dirt from their shoes before leaving.