Sudden ohia death

[dan d]

http://honolulu.craigslist.org/big/grd/5025423786.html
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Be aware and be very careful not to take dead ohias from puna to other places
aloha

Dan Dolaptchieff

[Rene Siracusa]

Or even from one part of Puna to another. The airborne spores of the fungus can spread the disease to unaffected areas. Per J.B. Friday, extension forester with CTAHR: best way is pile up the cut logs, cover with a tarp and let lie.

[rainyjim]

I'm still unsure that C. fimbriata is the casual agent, it certainly looks that way but I don't think it's been proved. Koch's postulates are very clear and I think further experiments with better design are necessary before drawing any final conclusions.

I think in general people should be aware of transmission of invasive's but in light of the unknowns for this particular case we should move forward cautiously and continue exploring other possible causes.

There are too many unknowns, for example, just a few:

Unknown vector - insect?

Unknown C. Fimbriata strain - is this a new introduction or the same strain that affects sweet potato?

Inoculation of 1-2 year old seedling specimens is not consistent with specimens the fungi were collected from.

There are flaws in the design of the experiment. I'm all for this project and wholly support the work 100% I just want to make sure that we aren't jumping the gun here on this particular suspected causal agent.

Alohas

[bananahead]

clean your chainsaws before cutting in different areas.. its thought to be the main reason this fungus is spread (related to the one we've had in Hawaii for years affecting sweet potatoes)


ps. not all dead Ohia trees are from this.. alot of them in HPP are because the home owner removed the Uluhe ferns at base of tree thus removing the layer of shade and 'mulch' that keeps the thin ground soil moister and cooler.. one good drought will kill the tops of the Ohia back, and 2-3 will kill the tree often... thats why so many down in HPP have dead tops... aloha

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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha

[shockwave rider]

quote:

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Originally posted by bananahead

clean your chainsaws before cutting in different areas.. its thought to be the main reason this fungus is spread (related to the one we've had in Hawaii for years affecting sweet potatoes)


ps. not all dead Ohia trees are from this.. alot of them in HPP are because the home owner removed the Uluhe ferns at base of tree thus removing the layer of shade and 'mulch' that keeps the thin ground soil moister and cooler.. one good drought will kill the tops of the Ohia back, and 2-3 will kill the tree often... thats why so many down in HPP have dead tops... aloha

******************************************************************
save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha

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While there is a lot of die back of ohias from development of lots, that is a much slower process, the specific lots in HPP I've been watching die back very quickly are all undeveloped. It is only taking a few weeks for these lots to go from undisturbed ohia forest to dead standing ohia forest. We were visiting friends in Kaimu recently after not being down that way in months and were shocked to see the old ohia forest just before Black Sands was almost entirely dead, at least what could be seen from the road.

There seem to be two things killing the ohia: damage from development that is a long slow death, and the faster death of undisturbed forest caused by this new pathogen. The new threat makes it all the more important to not just go in and clearcut healthy ohia stands. At a gut level I am feeling like there is a connection between Iselle and the sudden increase and wider spread of this new pathogen over the last year.

[Guest]

Somewhat concerning to have so much bull dozing happening in the middle of ground zero. First helco redozed their 3 mile+ power line road that runs up from geothermal along leilani estates. Now their is another bull dozer taking down miles of 120 year old Dead or dying Ohia less than 100 yards in from Helco-geothermal power line road. All this development is spreading this disease or environmental disaster, faster than our scientists can figure out what is happening to the Puna ohia rain forests,jmo. Anyone know why or what this large clearing of Ohia is for, maybe another subdivision or power line for geothermal?. The hundreds if not thousands of disease infected 120 Year old trees look to be dropped, pushed, and left. I doubt the bull dozing operator or who is paying him cares about the spreading of the fungus through leilani and the rest of Puna or the state for that matter.

[Guest]

We are going to be cutting down another dozen dead Ohia around our property lines this week. The dead Ohia eventually fall on our fence(happened four times already) if we don't cut them down. Should we discard the green waste somewhere or just let them continue to rot where they drop? The spreading of this lawyer tree disease does not appear to be slowing or stopping anytime soon.
The area around the zoo in hilo is getting hit hard by the lawyer disease(I call it). The medium between the highways heading in or out of hilo from keaau are losing all of its Ohia. It looks like the tree crews were trying to work around the Large Ohia trees. The Ohia are now dying and further spreading the disease throughout the entire area now. What other trees are being planned or could be planted along that stretch of highway to replace the foliage we once were use to seeing? Is it all going to be kept grass that will need to be cut by more over paid, over staffed, county lawn mowing crews?
To many lawyers who care about big money or big business have been running the show here long enough in my opinion. This environmental catastrophe to our Ohia stands here in Puna have happened on Kenoi's watch. Ground zero of this Ohia tree killing disease started within the 1 mile radius, of Our Trask, Kenoi, OHA and Ormat ran puna geothermal power plant,jmo.
A mayor in office like an environmentally caring or friendly Harry Kim may have made a difference? This Ohia disease may not have started or been ignored the way it was for years? Kenoi's assistant Kevin told me over the phone several years back(2010) that this dieoff was natural like others studied and funded in the past. He assured us that it was not being caused from our nearby geothermal power plant. Kevin did not want me talking to more leilani residents about the dieoff being related to the geothermal power plant, understandably. Then a few days later J.B Friday called me and asked to come out and take a look at the Ohia Death around our place. Disturbing and concerning that we still don't know the cause, or how it spreads, or have the funds for the proper studies.

[Wao nahele kane]

All the Ohia we've had that died were invaded by beetles in the trunk of the tree and then they fell over. I've gone around and looked for small holes on our other ohia and sprayed those with holes with Bayer advanced insecticide. One was dying but appears to have bounced back since being sprayed into the little beetle bore holes.

[Guest]

I found this recent article that has included funds being allocated towards our Ohia wilt.

https://www.hirono.senate.gov/press-rele...priorities

Anyone notice a lower dying ohia tree rate lately? OR any once dead Ohia growing back this spring?

Personally I think i have been seeing a lot of new ohia growth around my house this spring, with a lot less browning or orange colored dying trees. I am hoping that the environment has been balancing itself out lately, or the ohia fungus is just not being as distructive?

[Lee M-S]

I believe the Ohia on the median were accidentally killed by the clearing crews disturbing their roots.

I get the impression the area has been cleared and leveled to make it easier and cheaper to maintain. The old uneven ground was difficult to keep the jungle cleared.

quote:

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Originally posted by gypsy69

The medium between the highways heading in or out of hilo from keaau are losing all of its Ohia. It looks like the tree crews were trying to work around the Large Ohia trees. The Ohia are now dying and further spreading the disease throughout the entire area now.

What other trees are being planned or could be planted along that stretch of highway to replace the foliage we once were use to seeing? Is it all going to be kept grass that will need to be cut by more over paid, over staffed, county lawn mowing crews?

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