Battle against Sudden Oak Disease tough, but essential

As you may have read in the Curry Coastal Pilot, the Oregon Board of Forestry recently met in Brookings and toured areas affected by Sudden Oak Death (SOD), the tree disease caused by the non-native pathogen Phytophthora ramorum. SOD is a relatively new disease to Oregon. Since its discovery in the Brookings area in 2001, forest managers in the public and private sectors have been working together to locate infected trees, eradicate the pathogen from infested sites, and slow the spread of the disease.

Cutting and burning infected and nearby trees may seem crude but it is the best disease management tool available to us. There is nothing we can spray to kill the pathogen or prevent trees from becoming infected. Cutting and burning infected trees, many of them still green, destroys the pathogen and reduces the potential for spread of air-borne spores. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work as planned. Inconsistent funding often has delayed treatment and allowed the disease to spread before we can destroy it.

http://www.currypilot.com/20101124116570/Opinion/Public-Forums/Battle-against-Sudden-Oak-Disease-tough-but-essential