Mildew on pine

What could be causing this white mold on my longleaf pine? I have lots of them, but this the only one with the problem.

That's really odd. Never seen anything like it. Longleaf should be just about immune to mildew, given the humid range it evolved in! We do have one longleaf here, transplanted a couple of decades ago from Louisiana, and it never shows mildew. But we're just happy it lives, up here in our climate.

Guy S.

It is strange to me too. It seems to be growing fine even though it has the mildew. The only thing I have put on it is Ortho garden disease control, but it hasn't helped yet. And like I said, the other longleafs don't have this stuff, but this particular one came from a nursery somewhere near Tallahassee. I saw on TV over the weekend to mix milk and water 50/50 to control mildew, any idea if it works?

This message was edited Jun 26, 2006 9:03 PM

Sounds fishy to me, unless the milk serves as a substrate for some other fungus that's antagonistic to mildew.

I wouldn't expect the fungicide treatment to knock out what's already there, but it might prevent it from spreading, depending upon the active ingredient(s) and the effect upon your mildew species. Someone else is bound to find this thread soon and shed light on it for both of us.

Guy S.

I think it is sour milk and water. I tried it on my dogwood for powdery mildew last year and it didn't hurt, but didn't seem to really cure it either. No mildew this year though. I think the idea is to create a layer of beneficial bacteria that prevents or kills other harmful bacteria, viruses, mildew, etc. The milk mix got kinda smelly when I let it sit in a bottle for a few days.

Oops, I over-typed Guy. He got it pretty much right on the head. It seemed to stop the spread of the mildew to the new growth, but didn't cure the affected areas.

Set fire to it - Longleaf pine seedlings are subject to a few fungal diseases which, in the wild, are controlled by grass fires.

See http://www.pfmt.org/standman/prescrib.htm scroll down to 'Control Insects And Disease'

Resin


This message was edited Jun 27, 2006 5:05 PM

I had actually thought of that but figured everyone else would think I was crazy. I may rake the mulch away and start a light fire around it from grass clippings.

Well I mixed up a homemade solution of baking soda, dawn detergent, and water and sprayed the tree with it. It killed the powdery mildew but last week the tree turned brown and died. Oh' well, I guess it was meant to be. I still wonder what caused the mildew though.

That is wierd for longleaf. They never have mold. Setting fire to it is a good idea. For that matter when their big they like a good burn every 4 or 5 years helps them stay healthy.

I agree, it was strange. That one was the only one that I bought mail order, it was semi-bareroot. I have bought many more locally that were in containers and they are growing strong and healthy.

I'd still have a go at firing it - there's a chance it is just the needles that were killed, and the bud may be OK and leaf out normally in the spring.

Resin

We get free longleaf pine seedlings from the local extension office, usually beginning of December. SC is trying to regrow the native pine in the coastal areas, at lot of land around here was owned by paper mills and timber companies. Longleaf was the pine around here but other pines were grown that grew faster etc. Might want to check into it and get some free trees.

Hi Resin,

A question: Can burning be done for other pines as well? I've never seen mildew ever on anything around here but thought I'd ask.

Thanks,

Dax

Hi Dax,

Yes for the few others that have a 'grass stage' (Pinus engelmannii, P. devoniana, P. latteri, P. elliottii var. densa), but mostly, no.

Resin