Fairfax County is warning people to be on alert for a disease called Vascular Streak Dieback that’s killing new plantings purchased at nurseries.
Redbud, maple, and dogwood trees appear to be the most affected by the emerging disease that causes plant leaves to yellow as they die, the county said.
During the dieback process, you may see scorched leaf margins and the planting wilt. The wilting typically starts at the top of the tree.
Vascular Streak Dieback has no cure is hard to detect, according to a fact sheet from Virginia Cooperative Extension.
The disease has been found in Virginia and five other states. In some cases, nurseries have lost 100 percent of their stock, the extension service said in August.
The cause of Vascular Streak Dieback is a fungus called Ceratobasidium theobromae that is inside the woody stem of trees in the nurseries. The wind spreads the fungal spores. “After a spore infects a leaf, it travels into the branch and the main stem’s woody tissue, eventually killing the plant,” a county news release said.
For people buying trees at area nurseries, Virginia Cooperative Extension recommends:
- Ask nursery staff to check the internal woody tissue of plantings before you buy them.
- Look for scorched leaves and buds or dieback of young stems.
Virginia Cooperative Extension has a chart of more than 20 woody ornamental plants that have been diagnosed with the disease.
If you have plants or branches that you suspect have the disease, you can bag them and take them or mail them to the extension service so it can be positively identified. Here are directions. If you use the mail, the service recommends a two-day delivery to avoid damage to live tissue.
Plant Disease Clinic
106 Price Hall
170 Drillfield Dr., Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0331
Feature image of vascular streak disease on a redbud courtesy Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services/Nicole Kopas
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