The entire town of South Bristol, Middlesex and Italy and parts of the towns of Bristol and Naples have been placed in an oak quarantine district.
The state Department of Environmental Conservation has found oak trees infected with wilt on public and private property in these quarantine areas. State officials say the disease is destructive to forest health.
Oak wilt can have a devastating impact on private and state lands, DEC Commissioner Amanda Lefton said in a prepared statement.
“Oaks are an important part of the environment and local economies, and DEC is committed to working with communities, landowners and industry partners to protect these vital resources,” said Lefton.
What is oak wilt?
First discovered in Wisconsin in 1944, oak wilt is a disease caused by a fungus and blocks the water-carrying vessel, or xylem, of host trees, eventually causing wilting and leaf drop.
Infected red oaks usually die within weeks of infection.
How does oak wilt spread?
The disease is spread through interconnected root systems and by beetles that pick up fungal spores from fungal mats on infected trees and carry them to other oaks.
Humans can also be blamed.
The spread of oak wilt disease is associated with the movement of firewood and other wood products, which is why the quarantine is in place. Therefore, oak logs and branch debris are prohibited from leaving the quarantine district unless chipped to less than one inch in two dimensions. The movement of other types of wood is also restricted, unless they are 29 inches or more in length for identification purposes.
Restricting the movement of oak wood within the quarantine district helps limit the spread of oak wilt while DEC officials treat infected sites and monitor the area for additional infections.
Where in Ontario County was the oak tree found?
DEC officials said they detected discolored oaks during aerial surveys last July.
Oak wilt has been confirmed at seven sites in Middlesex, Italy, South Bristol and Naples – four on private land and three in DEC’s High Tor Wildlife Management Area.
The State Department of Environmental Conservation has found oak wilt disease in some oak trees in the High Tor Management Area as well as other locations in Ontario County.
Infected oaks were cut down as were some neighboring non-symptomatic oaks.
To prevent further spread, stumps were treated with herbicide to kill the roots, and logs and branches were chipped or burned to prevent mats of fungal spores from growing.
DEC officials will monitor the stand and neighboring oak trees for symptoms of oak wilt. Aerial surveys around positive detections will continue for at least the next five years.
The disease was found in a rural area of Canandaigua in 2016.
How long will the oak quarantine last?
It’s hard to say, although there is a case history to look back on.
Oak wilt was first discovered in New York in 2008 in the town of Glenville in Schenectady County.
Over the course of a decade, DEC officials managed a total of five infestation sites in the Glenville area, which included the removal and disposal of 203 oaks from 23 properties.
No new infections have been found since 2018, prompting the lifting of the district quarantine. DEC will continue to monitor oak trees in the area for signs of new oak wilt infections.
To learn more about oak wilt
For more information, visit DEC’s website or email foresthealth@dec.ny.gov.
Other invasive species to watch for in the Finger Lakes
According to the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association and DEC, the lanternfly, which was discovered in Ithaca, Tompkins County in the fall of 2020, is of great concern. It can wreak havoc on vines and hops, as well as maple, walnut and fruit trees.
The hemlock woolly adelgid is another. This pest, which is fatal to Eastern hemlock trees, was discovered in the Canandaigua Lake watershed in the fall of 2014.
The gypsy moth is yet another. Several areas of the lake’s watershed were severely defoliated, including South Bristol and Middlesex in 2020. Canandaigua also saw damage.
The Watershed Association also warns boaters about the need to guard against the transport of destructive invasive species such as hydrilla and others to the lake.
For more information, visit https://dec.ny.gov/ or https://www.canandaigualakeassoc.org/.
Mike Murphy covers Canandaigua and other Ontario County communities and writes the Eat, Drink and Be Murphy food and drink column. Follow X at @MPN_MikeMurphy.
This article originally appeared on the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Oak wilt found in Ontario County. Entire cities quarantined