Common Types of Tree Fungus

You may find it difficult to say goodbye to the tree that you have loved. By taking care of your trees, you can extend the goodbye.

Knowing the symptoms of types of tree fungus and how to treat it will give you a better chance at saving your tree. Here are 10 fungal infections that you can use to save your tree.

How Does Fungus Affect Trees?

Many different methods can be used to spread fungi spores. Tiny spores are able to travel from tree to tree.

• Air
• Splashing Water
• Contaminated Tools
• Soil
• Insects

These spores can land on your trees and infect its wood, fruit, and leaves.

Maintaining the health of your tree is vital. Fungal spores are more likely to infect trees that are stressed by drought, winter injury, vandalism or other factors.

How can you protect against fungal diseases? Your tree should be well-pruned, and it needs plenty of sun.

What Are The Signs Of A Tree Fungal Disease?

Different fungi can produce different symptoms on your trees. Keep an eye out for any changes. If you notice any changes in your tree, contact an arborist.

• Fungal disease symptoms may include:
• Abnormal growth
• Leaves or needles that are wilting, falling or shedding their leaves
• Discoloration
• Wood depressions
• Fruits sabs

There Are Many Different Types Of Fungal Disease In Trees

1. Thousand Cankers Disease

Black walnut trees are highly susceptible.

Symptoms Cankers, yellowing of leaves and leaf thinning are symptoms of this fungal disease.

Cankers can kill individual limbs and cause them to girdle. This could result in the decline of the tree. Cankers may bleed and leave a dark stain on the bark. Peeling the bark may reveal walnut twig beetle galleries.

Causes The walnut twig beetle carries the fungus Geosmithia morbida. As part of their lifecycle, these beetles tunnel into the bark to cause cankers.

Cankers can cause trees to lose water and nutrients over the course of their life if they accumulate in large numbers.

The walnut twig aphid is most active between April and June.

There is no cure for Thousand Cankers Disease. However, there are things you can try to treat it.

• The wood piles infested by ants during the winter months must be burned or removed.
• To prevent stress on trees, ensure that you provide proper irrigation and fertilization.
• Remove trees with less than half their crown to reduce walnut twig beetles.

Risk: Your tree can die within 10 years if it is affected by cankers.

2. Phytophthora Root Rot

Trees affected by phytophthora: Douglas-firs, eastern white pines, spruces and true firs are highly susceptible. Some species of firs have a certain tolerance, including Momi and Turkish.

A phytophthora root decay may cause trees to develop reddish brown needles or dieback. Dieback, reddish brown needles, and needle decay are all signs.

Phytophthora root rot is a fungal infection spread by soil water and surface. During cold and dry seasons, chlamydospores (or oospores) or resting spores develop. These spores are capable of living for a long time in soil or plants.

When temperatures are above 59degF, these spores will germinate. The sporangia, which are spore producing structures that release the zoospores, then develop. They can swim for up to one hour in the soil water, reaching vulnerable roots. Or they can consume excess water and swim to healthy areas.

The spores will spread to the plant’s roots and produce infectious mycelium. Mycelium spreads through stems and roots causing tissue decay. This prevents vital nutrients from reaching the other parts of a tree.

Season: When temperatures are above 59 degrees, new infections can occur.

Treatment: Since there is no cure, it is important to prevent this disease.

How to protect trees from phytophthora root Rot

• Purchase and plant only healthy seedlings purchased from a registered farm.
• Avoid planting on infected soil.
• Plant nursery plants that have reddish brown root tips, or any other signs of phytophthora.
• Avoid over-fertilizing your trees and over-watering them.

The root rot caused by phytophthora can be deadly to your trees.

3. Hypoxylon Canker

Most commonly, this disease affects oak trees.

Symptoms Hypoxylon Canker, also known as a fungus infection, causes a dead lession on the trunk and limbs of trees. Canker is located under the bark. The leaves become yellow-brown. It’s possible that branches die or that twigs grow less.

After the death of trees and limbs, the bark can fall away exposing stroma. This is a thin layer of fungi hyphae that forms a crusty hard surface on which spores grow.

The fungus Hypoxylon Atropunctata is the cause of oak tree hypoxylon canker. This fungal infection is more prevalent in trees that are stressed, have been damaged by drought, or have been injured. The fungal infection enters the tree through wounds and causes decay to sapwood.

The hyphae mat of the fungus produces brownish conidia, which are asexual yeast spores. The wind carries these conidia from tree to trees, infecting them. The stroma changes color from silver to black as the fungus grows.

As the stroma increases, the spores start to leak out on the surface. The spores are then spread by wind, rain, and insects.

Treatment: This is a fatal disease. The Arborwise Tree Service suggests removing or burning trees with more than 15 percent of the crown infected.

Don’t leave a stump behind as the stroma may still be present on the wood.

Prevention: To prevent this disease, make sure that your trees receive proper water and fertilization throughout the year.

Risk: Large trees can die in one to two years.

4. Phytophthora Bleeding Canker

The European beech is the most common host of Phytophthora. Other hosts include American and maple beech, dogwoods, oaks and horse chestnuts.

Phytophthora bleeding canker causes the bark of your tree to fall off, damaging its sapwood tissue. Bark cankers cause a reddish brown sap to stain the bark, causing it to flow down. Bark can appear stained and water-soaked. Sapwood can come in a range of colors, including orange, brown and pink.

Causes: Phytophthora mayker bleeding can be caused by Phythora species (a fungus like animal), such as P. gonapodyides, P. pini, and P. plrivora. These species are found in soils that are moist. Rainwater spreads the spores.

If there are wounds in the bark, infection will occur. Phytophthora now can survive by resting spores inside the bark cankers.

According to the Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Phosphorus acid is effective against Phytophthora. Avoid damage to the bark from vandalism and other sources, such as mowers or trimmers.

Mulch can be used to prevent soil spores germination around the base of your tree. Avoid planting trees in soil that is saturated or wet.

Phytophthora may not be a danger to your tree.

5. Cytospora Canker

Cytospora canker is a disease that affects many trees, including cottonwood, Lombardy, and aspen. Certain Cytospora canker species are only spread by specific tree species.

Symptoms On the branches and bark, yellow, orange-brown areas or black spots appear. Sunken cankers appear on the bark along with black, pinhead-sized pimples. Dead bark that has been attached to a tree for many decades can come off in large chunks.

Cytospora is a fungus caused by different Cytospora species. The fungus can affect trees that are stressed out or damaged. Cankers have pimples that are the reproductive structures of the fungus.

When the environment is moist, spores can appear as tendrils in pimples.

Treatment: Preventing tree stress is an important control method. Most likely, this fungal disease will affect trees that are stressed or injured. Prepare the soil before planting. Add fertilizer. Water enough. Prune and protect the trunks and limbs. Only cut or prune trees when the weather is dry. Clean and sanitize all tools to prevent the spread of spores.

To create healthy, living tissue, remove all diseased or damaged bark. Healthy tissue shouldn’t be colored with oil or tar. According to Colorado State University Cooperative Extension, the best way to dry healthy tissues is to allow them to dry.

Cytospora canker is a disease that can kill your tree. The disease is most common in older trees, but it can also affect younger trees.

6. Anthracnose

Anthracnose can affect many deciduous hardwoods.

Symptoms. Anthracnose is characterized by:

• Leaves with small dead areas
• Dead leaf tips
• The veins of dead leaves
• Premature defoliation
• Twig Death due to Girdling Cankers

Fruiting structures that look like pimples start to appear on the underside of the infected leaf and at the end of the branches.

Apiognomonia is a fungus. The fungus may survive in the cankers on infected branches and twigs. Even fallen leaves can support the fungus. The wind carries the fungus spores from the cankers onto the leaves and twig tissue.

The fungus spreads via wind or rain to other trees.

Anthracnose is more active in cool temperatures (between 50-55 degrees) during the break of leaf buds. Both dry and moist conditions can cause the spread of anthracnose. Anthracnose is usually not severe if daily temperatures are over 60 degrees when buds break.

Treatment: Remove and burn all dead branches or twigs. Remove all leaves from around trees that are susceptible. PennState Extension recommends protecting your trees by using insecticides at budbreak and continuing weekly or biweekly applications until temperatures reach 60 degrees.

Anthracnose does not kill trees but can kill twigs and buds. This disease weakens your tree and makes it more susceptible to other illnesses.

7. Powdery Mildew

Powdery mildew can affect many trees. Here are some of the most common ones:

• Ash
• Maple
• Basswood
• Dogwood
• Lilac
• Magnolia
• Crabapple
• Catalpa
• Oak

Symptoms The powdery mildew can be caused by a group of fungi that is closely related. These fungi are found on lower and upper leaf surface, young stems, shoot tips and blossoms. Infected areas appear powdery-white due to the microscopic spore chain. Infection may cause:

• Leaf Yellowing
• Browning
• Distortion
• Leaf drops prematurely.

Cause: Powdery mildew fungus overwinters on infected buds. When buds open in the spring, they become infected.

Treatment: Using a pesticide registered for use on trees can help control powdery mildew.

Prevention:

• Plant trees that are susceptible to moisture in an area with good sunlight and air circulation.
• Pruning your plants will allow them to breathe better.
• When choosing trees for your garden, look for resistant cultivars.

Risk: Powdery mildew is the most common form, but it is rarely fatal. This disease is more severe on young trees in shaded areas.

8. Shot Hole

Shothole fungus affects many fruit trees, including cherry, almond, plum, and cherry trees.

Fruit lesions can occur in spring when the weather is wet. Twigs may develop small, purplish-black spots. These dark brown spots may become more noticeable and larger, and eventually turn brown. Each spot will begin to develop tiny dark brown bumps. These bumps, also known as sporodochia are spore producing structures.

Infected buds may have black, dark brown or shiny gum. Foliage may often wilt. Purple spots may appear on fruits and leaves as they grow. Sporodia only appear on the leaves, not the fruits. The brown center of the spotted leaves will eventually fall off, giving them a “shot-hole” appearance.

Wilsonomyces Caropophilus Spores are found on infected twigs and buds. They can spread to other trees through the wind and rain during winter. Shothole disease thrives in moist, wet conditions. The lower part of the tree is more susceptible to infection, so it has a longer lifespan.

Treatment: The treatment involves removing the infected wood, and trimming it. Fungicides can be used to protect buds, twigs and branches from infection. When watering your tree, keep the water level at a low enough level to avoid overheating its canopy.

Shot hole disease is a serious disease that can kill your trees’ buds and severely damage their leaves.

9. Verticillium Wilt

Redbud, hard maple and smoke trees are at risk. Conifers, yews and other resistant trees are available. Purdue University Cooperative Extension has a comprehensive table. This table contains information on woody plants resistant to the disease and those that do not. More than 300 plant species are susceptible to this disease.

Symptoms The leaf edges turn yellow, then brown and finally dry. One or more branches may suddenly wilt. Sometimes only one branch wilts. The wood under the bark of limbs that are drooping can often show discolored streaks. You may see discoloration of the wood after pruning.

Trees under stress from severe droughts, salt or nutrient deficiencies are more susceptible. Verticillium wilt occurs when Verticillium alboatrum, a soil borne fungus, infects the tree. The fungus infects the roots, where it creates structures to rest in. These structures can survive in the soil for decades.

The fungi that can cause the water to flow within the tree by penetrating the roots.

Season: The symptoms are most common during the summer.

Treatment: Since the fungus can live for a very long time underground, it’s best to plant resistant plants in the soil. Prune the affected limbs and provide your tree with adequate water and fertilizer. Verticillium Wilt will be slowed down by this.

Risk: Verticillium Wilt can kill your tree in a single growing season. You could have a tree that lives for several seasons, but each branch is slowly dying.

10. Sooty mold

Sooty mould can affect evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs.

Symptoms The black sooty mold is a charcoal fungus. It appears on leaves, branches and twigs. This fungus feeds on honeydew, a sticky sweet substance secreted by insects. Whiteflies, mealybugs and mealybugs are all pests.

The moldy layer prevents sunlight from reaching the leaves, reducing their ability to produce food.

Causes: Sooty mould is most commonly found on trees and shrubs that have been heavily damaged by honeydew insects. Honeydew sticks to plants until it is washed off by rain. The mold spores are carried by the wind from the honeydew into the honeydew. The honeydew can grow and develop.

Germination Of Spores Is The Cause Of Black Soot.

Treatment: Sooty mould must be targeted when it is treated. Cornell University Cooperative Extension suggests spraying the insecticide Malathion as soon as you see whiteflies or mealy bugs. Follow all instructions for best results.

If honeydew insect infestations are not controlled, mold will return.

Sooty mould will generally cause little damage to the tree. If the disease is severe, it may prevent photosynthesis and the leaves will not be able produce enough food for the tree.

What To Do When Your Tree Is Infected With A Fungus

Call a certified arborist in your locality if you suspect that your tree may have fungal disease. Tree disease must be treated as soon as possible. It is important to treat tree disease immediately.

Arborists can safely remove infected tree, apply fungicides, and perform preventative maintenance. You could lose your tree if you wait to call an arborist.

Call Us Now

In addition to our expertise in tree maintenance services, at Arborwise Tree Service we strive for customer satisfaction by offering competitive rates with no hidden costs or surprises along the way – just quality workmanship backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee! Our team is committed not only to providing excellent service but also educating each customer about their particular species’ needs so everyone feels informed throughout the process too! 

 

So if you’re looking for reliable professionals who are dedicated to helping keep your landscape beautiful all year round then look no further than Arborwise Tree Service – where quality meets affordability every time! Call us today!