It looks sick - do you think it's dying?

[Herb]

It's a Tanyosho Pine & it's been in place for about 6 years. Until this summer it's grown vigorously and it's needles have all been a good healthy dark green. Now they've suddenly faded and half of them have turned pale brown and are falling off.

I'm wondering whether to dig it up & throw it away, or wait till next spring to see if it recovers.....

[Hapygdnr]

I am by no means an expert ... If you've had it 6 yrs waiting until spring wouldn't be that bad. I'd rather wait and see for sure, especially since you've had it that long. I hope it comes back for you. Looks like a nice specimen. Maybe some body else will pop in who knows more. Let us know how it turns out.
Jeanne

[Chris_W]

Check down around the trunk to make sure there isn't anything strangling it. I've seen trees and shrubs have twine, tree guards, tape, or wires around them from the initial planting, sometimes from the ball and burlap, start to choke them after several years. If there isn't anything like that then I would see if it is too wet or might try looking up fungus problems that might affect evergreens.

Hopefully you can figure it out so you won't lose it

[Mary Ann]

Any critters involved there? We had Pine Bark caterpillars invade some mugho pines but they rejuvenated once we got rid of those pests. It looks like you have a lot of hardscape there, maybe they're suffocating? But then I've seen some healthy looking trees growing amid miles of sidewalks in the city. Don't know how the roots can breathe.

[JaneG]

Like MaryAnn says, could be Pine Bark or some other kind of caterpillar. I researched some we found on mugo pines earlier this year. They would have been on the plant for a brief period of time earlier in the year. They will destroy the current season growth, but the plant should recover. So I'd wait until Spring and find out for sure.

[DryGulch]

It looks like poor drainage to me. Whether it is crappy ball and burlap stuff that has not rotted away, overwatering, or mulching too close and high, something like that, but I have seen a lot of stuff like Chris mentioned first, twine aroung root or wire that is not girdling the main roots, or something like that.

[Herb]

After reading about the Mountain Pine Beetle devastation in B.C., I looked at the bark on the lower trunk of out Tanyosho Pine & noticed that bits of it looked loose.

So I fingered some loose bits & examined them. On the underside of one piece there was something that looked like a tiny bug.

I've managed to take a close-up, macro picture of it. I wonder if this insect - whatever it is - is what's caused the damage?

Picture 001.jpg (81.72 KiB) Viewed 3038 times

[Herb]

Today, I found around a dozen more of these beetles under loose bark & took them to the Government Forest Service. There, they were identified as Red Turpentine Beetles.

These usually attack a tree that's under stress, but once they go to work, that's the end of the tree. I was advised that the best thing to do is to dig the victim up, cut it up and destroy it. So I'm going to do that. The weather's turned cooler, so this evening I shall light a fire in our family room and then burn the corpse, starting with the worst infested part, the lower trunk.

I gather that if I want to make sure the beetles don't kill any nearby conifers, it would be a good thing to spray them with a systemic insecticide.....

[Mary Ann]

Sorry 'bout that, Herb. I googled Red Turpentine Beetles to learn more and one site offered this as an alternate method for control of threatened trees . . . . (I like a multi=prong approach). Sounds powerful tho'.

Chemical Control
Lindane is effective in preventing
attacks and in killing insects already
beneath the bark. It is especially useful
in controlling infestations in trees of
high value, such as shade and park
trees.
A 1.5-percent fuel oil solution of
lindane may be sprayed on the lower
part of a tree. This will prevent attacks
on a weakened or threatened tree for
several months. For those trees that
have already been attacked, the same
solution should be sprayed on the
trunks to a height of 1 foot above the
highest point of attack. The spray is
prepared by mixing 1 gallon of a 20-
percent lindane emulsifiable concentrate
in 14 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil.
Apply it at the rate of 1 gallon for
every 50 square feet of bark surface or
until the bark is thoroughly wet. Use a
low-pressure sprayer.

[Hapygdnr]

Herb
So sorry to hear about the diagnosis... hope you are successful at preventing the spread. Like sometimes happens... maybe when you rethink your garden space and move on to a replacement for the victim you'll come up with something you'll like even more. Still a shame though...
Jeanne

[Herb]

Jeanne and Mary Ann,
Thanks for the sympathy & for the information about Lindane. It sounds like the way to go.

I felt sure I was going to be advised to dig the pine out & destroy it, and I've done it - the cremation is taking place right now. It's been replaced by a Jundai-sugi Japanese Cedar (Cryptopmeria japonica jundai-sugi) that I saw at a nursery. It's said to be slow-growing, but I liked the look of it so much that I couldn't resist it despite it's being small. Here's the first picture of it in its new home -

[Hapygdnr]

Herb
I like the look of it too. I think you made a good choice! Thanks for the picture. Jeanne