Why has pencil pine browned?

[Sal15]

 

 

 

Hi Bunnings Family,

You’ve been very helpful over the past 18 months with my precious pencil pines. They are overall doing well. However the last one (gets the least sunlight and least natural rain) has had some browning out of the blue. I am not certain why and was hoping for advice. Thank you 

[EricL]

Hello @Sal15 

I suggest having a really good look at the branches of your pencil pine. Are there any insects on it? Are there any signs of sawdust on the pot or on the leaves. If this is has just currently happened, I suggest cutting off the brown dead pieces and putting it in your bin, do not mix it with your compost. I also suggest moving this pencil pine out of that area and away from the others just as a precaution.

For the meantime, I suggest giving it the best possible spot for sun and rain. If the symptoms continue, it's possible that it might be infected with a disease. I can only suggest observing it for the next two weeks, but if the tip of the tree continues to turn brown and starts to travel downwards then it is fully infected and it will need to be disposed of.

Let me call on our experienced member @Noelle for her recommendation.

If you need further assistance, please let us know.

Eric

[Sal15]

Thanks Eric 

The trees are planted in the ground. I sprayed some seasol at the base and then used fungus gun on the top where the browning has occurred.

I’d like to salvage the tree if possible. Do you think best to remove all the browning ?

There are aphids in the winter on all trees that i manually remove. Occasionally a slug or two. But no new pests that haven’t been before.

[Noelle]

Hi @Sal15 

Pencil pines grow from the tips of branches - "terminal" growths - do if you cut off the brown pieces, it will not regrow from that area to cover the bare patch.

I think Eric's assessment is probably correct - the tree is diseased. Pines are susceptible to a very serious fungal disease known as cypress canker and I suspect this is your problem.  There is no cure, so Eric's advice to watch for a couple of weeks to see if it is spreading is the right course of action.  If you can see it is spreading, then sadly the best thing to do is to remove the entire tree before the fungal spores spread to other healthy specimens. You should also remove the stump and roots, and then treat the soil with a garden fungicide to kill any spores that may be present.

Once the tree has been cut down, cut it up, bag the pieces and place into your household rubbish - do not add to the compost bin or place in your green waste bin!