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+--- Thread: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? (/showthread.php?tid=12550)
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - mermaid53 - 05-03-2017
P 10 HPP Maint thread
_____________
Wow
I just read the board meeting minutes from Oct and it paints an entirely different picture than the one that has been presented here.
Please read the minutes here :
http://www.hppoa.net/newsite/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/APPROVED-HPP-BOD-10-19-16.pdf
Especially poignant is the president's letter. One month after being appointed president and he is receiving death threats !
Edited by - Obie on 12/09/2016 14:48:40
Obie Posted - 12/10/2016 :
Are you the person calling in the death threats ?
Whatever you say Obie...like I said, there's bound to be disagreements on PT but no need to stoop down to this level no matter what the topic of disagreement.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Obie - 05-03-2017
mermaid53
That was a question not a statement.
You're stooping pretty low when you are attacking me about HPP stuff on a ROD thread.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - mermaid53 - 05-03-2017
So is what Obie conveying is, we can be as rude, disrespectful and nasty as we want to others as long as it's in the form of a question? How stupid of me!?
Moving along...
This thread started in 2013 and we still don't have definitive answers as to what's happening to our beautiful ohias. Some here think they know the answer. IMO adequate funding and research is necessary and until then...no one knows what's causing it. At least there's info on how to prevent it from spreading.
It really hit home while watching the Merrie Monarch and seeing esp this year, the low volume of ohia. Some halaus appeared to opt out replacing ohia w/some other island flower....not as colorful as previous years. Almost as if in mourning of the ohia...I could be totally wrong about that. During the televised Merrie Monarch, some of you may have seen the informational segment on the ohia...how we can even spread it via our shoes or slippahs.
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - HereOnThePrimalEdge - 05-03-2017
Some halaus appeared to opt out replacing ohia w/some other island flower....not as colorful as previous years. Almost as if in mourning of the ohia...I could be totally wrong about that.
Yes, that's exactly what happened. Organizers and judges informed halaus ahead of time it was acceptable to substitute another flower for ohia blossom. It's not banned however, so representatives were on hand to encourage those who gathered from the forest to harvest responsibly:
http://www.pressreader.com/usa/west-hawaii-today/20170410/281496456144198
On the fifth day - the scientists who studied the rivers - were forbidden to speak - or to study the rivers. -Jane Hirshfield's poem on creation
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - mermaid53 - 05-03-2017
Very informative article. Mahalo for sharing HOTPE! [
]RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Jimbo2017 - 05-04-2017
There are many very close relatives of Ohia trees throughout the pacific. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrosideros
Maybe some industrious plant nursery brought in some rooted air layered plant samples (totally legal, BTW) of a New Zealand Ohia relative tree, and that had the fungus. It's easily possible the fungus is not lethal on other Ohias, but is lethal to Hawaii Ohia. That pathogen transfer and effect is a much more likely cause than 'mutations by chemicals'.
Mauka Hilo-side
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Kenney - 05-04-2017
Interesting theory Jimbo. Just curious, have you seen any info that would lead you to believe Ohia relatives are infected anywhere else ?
It's easier for some to just blame ROD on PVG, when there are a lot of possibilities
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Jimbo2017 - 05-04-2017
Worked some Google magic (in other words, simply searched for ceratocystis).
From classes and seeing the ROD talks from scientists on Hilo campus, it is such a more simple possibility that a new fungus came in to Hawaii (2010-ish?) or cross-bred with other fungus varieties of similar types in the same genus than some 'random' mutation associated with PVG.
The talk on campus showed 2 genetic varieties of the fungus attacking Ohia, with slightly different symptoms. - (See the link at the bottom for 2017 recordings - then click on Day 1-3 Speed session #1 at the 5 minute mark is Wade Heller doing some of the genetics work, and again at 14:30 for another ROD talk) http://tcbes.hilo.hawaii.edu/symposium2015/
other internet stuff for the big picture:
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~tcharrin/CERRES.html
Genetic variability of lots of Ceratocystis - pg. 232 gives a hint at how wacky the genetics of these related fungi are (and host plant range)
http://www.public.iastate.edu/~tcharrin/CfITS.pdf
Mauka Hilo-side
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Kenney - 05-04-2017
Thank you for presenting us with facts. Good to know that ROD is being discussed and studied at UH. Good luck with your studies!
RE: Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why? - Guest - 05-04-2017
Jimbo2017, Thank you for caring as well as your time, effort and informative links.
I became very discouraged about the dying Ohia for a couple years after first noticing it, my warnings were only finding authorities with deaf ears. Once I claimed the "possibility" of PGV causing the death of Ohia trees in our area of lower Puna. I finally received a few calls back from those authorities, even had a visit from J.B friday himself.
I had called J.B Friday a few times prior to his visit onto my property but J.B was either to busy or had no class that semester to come out and take a look for himself. Once J.B did have time and look at the dead, dying or next ohia around lower Puna he could tell right away something was not right with these Ohia trees fatalities.
Among many questions I had asked J.B that day, one I asked was if the dead Ohia could be caused by a fungus? His answer was "no" fungus has ever been known to kill Ohia. My wife asked J.B if the Bore Beetles could be causing the Ohia to die? J.B's answer for her was no beetle has ever been known to kill any Ohia's larger than 8 inches in diameter. My wife and I were also concerned about our kids brushing their teeth or showering with the dead Ohia matter that was now in our water catchment. J.B assured us that the dead Ohia tree matter would not harm the kids.
A few months later we heard they had named it "ROD" and that it "WAS" caused by a fungus after all. A year after that we read that the spread of ROD "WAS" being helped by the bore beetle. Thankfully, we have not heard anything about the dead Ohia matter being harmful to digest or wash with. We are still hoping that the health of our children will not be effected by the mass Ohia tree death we have experienced.
Mass tree death's in other areas of the united states or world have been linked to cause near by communities an increase of health issues. Leilani estates has certainly seen thousands of trees die in only a few years so it does continue to worry us some to say the least. Not sure why our area which is "ROD's Ground Zero" has no health studies for people's health started or in the works to be started?
I found This article as well as others interesting and relevant to our areas tree death experience.
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/01/when-trees-die-people-die/267322/
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/can-lack-of-trees-kill-you-faster/
Jimbo2017, Mahalo again and I apologize for my continued rants and opinions to how this ROD may have been started. It's been 7 long years since my first calls for Ohia tree help went out to the proper authorities. jmo's