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29-09-2004, 01:35 PM

(Roy Bohn) wrote in message ...
My Ponderosa Pine 's needles have a sooty black color starting at the base
toward the tip. The needle usually dies. The tree is now 40% bare. Is this a
fungus caused by the wet weather? Can anything be done to save it? I live in
central Pennsylvania.

This could be a sooty mold growing on the sticky secretions of aphids,
scales, or mealy bugs. Sooty molds are harmless, except they reduce
photosynthesis to the needle. What you need to look for is the source
of the sticky secretion and control *THAT*. You can wash the sooty
mold off.

Nina.