| For
Immediate Release December 10, 1996 |
For More Information, Call: |
STATEWIDE TASK FORCE GIVES GUIDELINES FOR SAFE CHRISTMAS TREE DISPOSAL TO SAVE CALIFORNIA PINES
MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA, December 10, 1996 -- California residents are being advised by a statewide task force to take precautions when disposing of their Christmas trees this year to help control the spread of pine pitch canker, an incurable disease that has killed thousands of Monterey pine trees.
Pine pitch canker, a fungal disease recently introduced to California, causes dieback and mortality in native and ornamental pine trees. It may also infect Monterey pine Christmas trees. While every attempt is made to sell only disease-free Christmas trees, some trees could harbor the disease without showing symptoms. "Our concern," explained Don Owen, Chairman of the statewide Pine Pitch Canker Task Force," is that the disease could be transported to areas of the state that don't have pitch canker. And since there is no known cure for pitch canker, limiting its spread is the key to prevention."
The disease is present in 16 coastal and adjacent inland California counties from Mendocino to San Diego. Bark beetles, which carry the fungus, primarily infest Monterey and Bishop pines but also feed and breed on inland forest trees such as Ponderosa pine. As yet, the disease has not been found in the Sierras. It does not infect humans, pets or other plants.
Pitch canker should not prevent citizens from purchasing a Monterey pine Christmas tree. Some simple precautions will help prevent the spread of pine pitch canker:
1. Purchase and dispose of Monterey pine Christmas trees locally. Don't transport them long distances.
2. Preferred methods of disposal include:
- dispose of the tree promptly through a local recycling program, or
- dispose at a local landfill which either buries or composts greenwaste, or
- chip the tree and either compost the chips or use them as a mulch around your home
3. If you choose a live Monterey pine and decide to keep it, purchase it locally and do not transport it outside the area.
For further information, contact your local Agricultural Commissioner's office.
Last edited November 04, 2001
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