Soil and Stocking Effects on Caliciopsis Canker of Pinus strobus L.

Kyle Lombard,Kimberly McCracken,Thomas Luther,Stephen Wyka,Isabel Munck,Jennifer Weimer,Wayne Searles,William Ostrofsky,Donald Keirstead,Bruce Allen

doi:10.3390/f7110269

Abstract

Soil and stand density were found to be promising predictive variables associated with damage by the emerging disease of eastern white pine, Caliciopsis canker, in a 2014 survey with randomly selected eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) stands. The objective of this study was to further investigate the relationship between soil and stocking in eastern white pine forests of New England by stratifying sampling across soils and measuring stand density more systematically. A total of 62 eastern white pine stands were sampled during 2015–2016. Stands were stratified across soil groups and several prism plots were established at each site to measure stand density and determine stocking. Caliciopsis canker incidence in mature trees was greater in sites with drier or shallow soils compared to sites with loamy soils and in adequately stocked stands compared to understocked stands (p < 0.0001). Caliciopsis canker signs and symptoms were observed in all size classes. Live crown ratio, a measure of forest health, decreased with increasing Caliciopsis canker symptom severity. The fungal pathogen, Caliciopsis pinea Peck, was successfully isolated from cankers on trees growing in each soil group. Forest managers will need to consider damage caused by Caliciopsis canker related to stand factors such as soil and stocking when regenerating white pine stands.

Highlights

In New England and New York, where the forest cover surpasses 60% of the land area and the annual value of forest products industry exceeds $18.8 billion, forests are vital to the region’s economy [1]
A modified version of the New Hampshire Important Forest Soil groups was developed for conditions potentially related to white pine growth and productivity [13]
A piece of the bark containing the fruiting structure was placed onto the lid of an inverted petri dish, so that the lid was on the bottom and potato dextrose agar (PDA) media on top, and sealed with Parafilm to induce sporulation

Summary

Introduction

In New England and New York, where the forest cover surpasses 60% of the land area and the annual value of forest products industry exceeds $18.8 billion, forests are vital to the region’s economy [1]. Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) is an important component of the region’s forests. In Massachusetts white pine forest types comprise 25% of the forest [2]. White pine often grows in pure stands, but it can grow well in association with other conifers and hardwoods. The geographic range of eastern white pine extends from Canada to South Carolina and west to Iowa. Eastern white pine grows in all the soils throughout this range, but does best in sandy, well-drained soils where it is not outcompeted by hardwoods [3,4]

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