Re: Arbutus disease?

[David D.]

Contact your local county ag inspectors. It could be something they
wanna know about.

You never mentioned what county you are in, or what fertilizer regime
you use. All this is relevant./





Raul Essig > wrote in message >...


>
> We have a young madrone (arbutus menziesii) in our backyard
> here in central california, zone 15 by the sunset western guide.
>
>
> With the recent rains is has gotten a number of symptoms
> and I would appreciate any advice as to how best to treat it.
>
> The newest leaves have curled, turned red and appear
> swollen, though the tissue is not soft. As the curled leaves
> age they dry out and turn brown.
> Peach leaf curl?
> I've removed the diseased leaves.
>
> The tree was planted about three years ago, and had
> grown with three trunks instead of one to a height
> of about 8 1/2 feet. Since it had already developed
> into that shape when it was planted, I did not try
> to thin it down to one trunk.
> In any case I like the aesthetics of it this way.
>
> One of the trunks, in addition to the diseased leaves
> also has a canker about 5 feet off the ground.
>
> Would the tree be better off with my leaving that
> trunk alone, or would the canker eventually take
> out the branch anyway, implying I should prune
> it while trunk is less than two cm thick?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
>
> -R

[Pam]

The coast madrone is prone to a number of disease problems, particularly in urban settings. It
is intolerant of pollution and doesn't like irrigation and both of these factors, combined with
its predisposition to a form of anthracnose typically makes it very short-lived in a cultivated
environment. Unfortunately, it is also declining in its native environment as well and we are
running the risk of losing this majestic and lovely tree altogether.

This link should provide some good information, but it will probably be necessary to have a
consulting arborist examine the tree to assess its long term viability.
http://students.washington.edu/melliott/arbutus/disease.html

pam - gardengal



"David D." wrote:

> Contact your local county ag inspectors. It could be something they
> wanna know about.
>
> You never mentioned what county you are in, or what fertilizer regime
> you use. All this is relevant./
>
> Raul Essig > wrote in message >...
>
> >
> > We have a young madrone (arbutus menziesii) in our backyard
> > here in central california, zone 15 by the sunset western guide.
> >
> >
> > With the recent rains is has gotten a number of symptoms
> > and I would appreciate any advice as to how best to treat it.
> >
> > The newest leaves have curled, turned red and appear
> > swollen, though the tissue is not soft. As the curled leaves
> > age they dry out and turn brown.
> > Peach leaf curl?
> > I've removed the diseased leaves.
> >
> > The tree was planted about three years ago, and had
> > grown with three trunks instead of one to a height
> > of about 8 1/2 feet. Since it had already developed
> > into that shape when it was planted, I did not try
> > to thin it down to one trunk.
> > In any case I like the aesthetics of it this way.
> >
> > One of the trunks, in addition to the diseased leaves
> > also has a canker about 5 feet off the ground.
> >
> > Would the tree be better off with my leaving that
> > trunk alone, or would the canker eventually take
> > out the branch anyway, implying I should prune
> > it while trunk is less than two cm thick?
> >
> > Thanks in advance.
> >
> >
> > -R

[MLEBLANCA]

In article >, Pam > writes:

>The coast madrone is prone to a number of disease problems, particularly in
>urban settings. It
>is intolerant of pollution and doesn't like irrigation and both of these
>factors, combined with
>its predisposition to a form of anthracnose typically makes it very
>short-lived in a cultivated
>environment. Unfortunately, it is also declining in its native environment as
>well and we are
>running the risk of losing this majestic and lovely tree altogether.
>
>
>pam - gardengal
>
>
>
>"David D." wrote:
>
>> Contact your local county ag inspectors. It could be something they
>> wanna know about.
>>
>>

Madrone has also been found to be infected by Phytophthora ramorum,
the cause of Sudden Oak Death syndrome in California.
Emilie