Risk Background

Pinus spp. is a host of Pitch Canker and Phytophthora pinifolia. Pitch canker and Phytophthora pinifolia are significant diseases of forest and urban trees not recorded in Australian territory. In 2007, there were 1,010,000 hectares of coniferous forest plantations in Australia territory (ABARE 2008). Of this area, 75 % is planted with Pinus radiata (Parsons et al. 2006). This resource is considered to be most at risk should Pitch Canker and Phytophthora pinifolia be introduced into and establish in Australia.

Pitch Canker

Pitch canker is caused by the fungus Fusarium circinatum Nirenberg & O'Donnell; telemorph Gibberella circinata Nirenberg & O'Donnell. The disease is characterised by wilting, fading of needles on branch tips, copious amounts of resin at or near infection site. Needles become yellow, then red, fall from branch; infected wood is slightly sunken, honey coloured, with resin. Trees can suffer crown dieback or may die. Also causes a damping off of seedlings in nurseries. Bark, twig and cone beetles are vectors of the disease.

Phytophthora pinifolia

So far as is known, Phytophthora pinifolia is endemic to Chile where Pinus radiata is an exotic. A newly described species Phytophthora pinifolia has been found to be associated with widespread death of Pinus radiata in forest plantations in Chile. First reported in February 2004 (Wingfield, 2007) in a 70 hectare stand of six year-old trees, the disease was observed to be affecting approximately 60,000 hectares by the end of 2006 (Duran et al., 2008). The disease is characterised by needle infections, cambium infections, phloem cankers, dieback and tree death . There is often copious resin exudation from infected tissues.