Ohia trees are dying rapidly, Why?

[pbmaise]

Every social forum has a range of characters which helps make them more interesting.

The first link I posted has a picture of leaf gall caused in ohia by an insect.

The second is a technical paper on this insect and control using H. conformis (a type of lady bug)

I am interested in insects since they are known to damage ohia, and can introduce a fungus.

Live plants in general have natural protections against fungi.

In the technical paper notice the green bug psyllid population is held in check by H. conformis.

So a good bug kills the bad bug.

Perhaps the problem is not a new bad bug, nor a new bad fungus. Instead the problem may be a decrease in population of good bugs.

The geothermal plant is off the hook per observations that ohia close to plant are fine, and far from plant are not.

Someone on the web is blaming new strains of papaya designed to be fungus proof. How a new fungus resistant plant makes a different plant fungus susceptable is beyond me.

Gypsy is a good observer and ponders problems, ALBEIT only in one direction.

Questions:

1. Look at photo of leaf gall on an Ohia and check live and dead ohia leaves.

alohaarborist.com/index.php/pest-of-the-month-october-2011-ohia-psyllid/

2. Think of bad bugs, wasps, scale, and psyllid. Is there a new bad bug? Is a population of bad bugs out of check?

3. Think of good bugs. Are good bug populations down?

3a Could same chemicals damaging bees damage good bugs?

3b How about them frogs? Would high concentrations of frogs decrease good bugs?

[pbmaise]

Note: Dutch elm proved to be caused by a beetle and willy willy were all killed by a wasp.

Knowing what fungus it is not that important.

It is like saying people attacked by sharks bleed to death. Therefore, we must focus on bleeding.

I am not discounting this new scale introduced in 2012.

Question: Are ohia more likely to be found dead around strawberry guava? If the scale which attacks strawberry guava can kill that tree, why can't this same scale transmit a fungus. I agree researchers checked to make sure the scale will not kill the ohia. What kills the ohia is ultimately the fungus. Which insect is the vector?

[pahoated]

Look, re... intellectually challenged. This fungus has now spread to Kona. There is no mechanism for this fungus to exhibit this kind of spread except one thing. Some human or humans is spreading it. Since it is a different strain never seen before in Hawaii, it can be tracked. The evidence shows it starting in a very small area of Pohoiki in 2013.
http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sites/ha...k=cxCd7Wlb

None of these kook theories can account for a natural spreading like that. The most obvious indication is somebody is spreading infected ohia around the island by driving it around, and there are only a few people that have a fixation on using ohia for construction use.

"Aloha also means goodbye. Aloha!"

[Obie]

"P.S. I still have many notes from several years ago on how this ohia wilt seemed to spread and where we were first seeing it'

The common denominator here is Gypsy because he was in all of these places.

Gypsy,can you prove that you didn't cause it to spread ?

[MarkP]

Regarding Tectococcus Ovatus, the scale insect deployed against strawberry guava, one of the objections raised was that it would be unsightly. It causes very obvious galls on the leaves. I have been eagerly awaiting the first sight of this but have never seen it so far. I doubt that Tectococcus Ovatus is causing the wilt since its occurrence and spread does not seem to match that of the wilt.

[pbmaise]

Thank you Mark everyone else seems more keen on hounding gypsy.

[Punatic007]

quote:

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Originally posted by pbmaise

Thank you Mark everyone else seems more keen on hounding gypsy.

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Some rather inappropriate and vicious attacks on gypsy, WTF?

[Chas]

Welcome to the new Punaweb. It's why I rarely post.

[Punatic007]

quote:

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Originally posted by Chas

Welcome to the new Punaweb. It's why I rarely post.

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I hear ya. And if you don't back up your post or opinion with a link from a gov study the little trolls throw their arms up and dance in a circle squealing that you must be lying. Another WTF?

[Guest]

If our Puna Geothermal is truly clean and does not use chemicals why do they keep settling or getting fined?

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf...380066A04A

Unless geothermal has already had multiple other problems or fines in the past I would think $76,000 is pretty stiff.

P.S. What would they need pentane for? Also what dangers could chemicals like pentane pose to the plant or nearby community?

Sorry had to fix spelling of pentane.