Pine Wilt Killing Evergreen Trees in Southeast Nebraska
02/21/2012

BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) _ A disease called pine wilt is killing
evergreen trees in southeast Nebraska.

     It affects mostly Scotch and Austrian pines and is caused by a
parasitic nematode carried by a wood boring beetle. Pine wilt
causes a pine tree's foliage to turn brown and die quickly, often
within two months.

     Nicole Haxton is a horticulturist with the Gage County Extension
Office.  There is no cure for pine wilt, which first showed up in the
area about two years ago.

     Haxton says the microscopic nematode attacks the tissues in the
wood, causing decreased water flow. The nematode is carried from
tree to tree by the beetle. Controlling pine wilt is done by
destroying trees that have the disease.


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