Your pine has Marphistes Gall disease. This is caused by the Marphistes
mite which breeds in the summer and then the female deposits her eggs in
the ends of the topmost branches. As the eggs hatch the larvae feed on
the branch tips and also deposit their droppings in the capillary tubes
in the branches. This chokes off the branches and causes the browning
that you see.

Get yourself a hose-end sprayer and a garden hose. Mix 8 ounces of
muriatic acid (you can get it at any pool supply store) with a gallon of
water. Pour part of this mixture into the sprayer and turn the water on.
Try to get as fine a spray as possible. Concentrate the spray on the
upper branches, but be sure to give the entire tree a thorough spraying.
You should see results within a week.




far7134 wrote:
I have a very tall white pine tree that appears to be sick. The
needles on the tope of the tree are turning brown. This started
before winter with only some small clumps throughout the tree but now
large patches have formed. There is another large white pine tree
right next to it and it is doing just fine. The two trees are the
same size, which is taller then a telephone poll. There is another
tree right next to it, the branches are touching, but the needles on
this side are fine. Is this tree sick? The branches and bark appear
to be fine but I'm not an expert. Any suggestions or information on
tree care would be appreciated.