Give us a call at 44 we’re happy to discuss the symptoms or inspect your tree to provide a diagnosis. If you think your trees have fire blight but aren’t sure, the Certified Arborists at Independent Tree in Newbury, Ohio can help. What should I do if my tree has fire blight?įirst, be certain that the problem has been correctly diagnosed. While many species are susceptible, fire blight is especially damaging to apples and pears. Within the genus Prunus are apples, peaches, cherries, plums, raspberries, and other valuable fruiting crops. The rose family also includes the genera Pyrus (pears) and Prunus.

Which plants get fire blight?įire blight affects a lot of plants in the rose family (Rosaeae) which, as you probably guessed, includes roses. If you plan to plant an apple tree, look for disease-resistant varieties (see the list later in this article). Many types of apple trees are susceptible to fire blight. Once a tree is infected, a single canker can produce millions of bacteria that can spread to nearby susceptible trees and plants.Īlthough fire blight cankers can overwinter and become active the following spring, it is the new growth and flowers on trees that are most damaged by the bacterium’s rapid springtime spread.

Pollinators that carry the bacteria from flower to flowerįire blight can also be found in old, mummified fruit that is left on the tree or that falls to the ground.

Pruning cuts when the cutting blades aren’t disinfected between cuts.

Spray irrigation that waters affected trees and shrubs.

Rainfall that splashes bacteria onto nearby leaves, particularly during a hard rain or windy conditions.

Infected or dead fruiting spurs on branchesįire blight spreads throughout a tree and to nearby trees very easily.

Blighted flowers and fruit that turn brown and decay.

The ends of shoots, twigs, or branches are drooping or dead (they often look like a shepherd’s crook).

Cankers on a tree’s bark that look like discolored or wet patches, often with areas of dead or decayed sapwood around their edges.

You can identify fire blight by several characteristics: Image by Penn State Department of Plant Pathology & Environmental Microbiology Archives, Penn State University, įire blight is a destructive disease caused by a bacterium ( Erwinia amylovora) that thrives in the warm, humid, and rainy weather that coincides with the start of the growing season, and it is easily spread.

Crabapple tree diseases fire blight