Diplodiatipblight is a common disease among conifers, especially pines. Scots pine, red pine, Mugo pine, Ponderosa pine, and Austrian pine are especially susceptible. Diplodiatipblight of pines (formerly known as Sphaeropsis tipblight) is caused by the fungus Diplodia pinea. The fungus can live in dead needles, branches, and cones of the tree all year round. DiplodiaTipBlight. Needle Tip browning of pines is symptomatic of Diplodiatipblight (Diplodia pinea, syn. Sphaeropsis sapinea), a fungal disease. Loblolly pine has numerous ecological values, including stabilizing soil, providing food and habitat for numerous wildlife species, and carbon sequestration. However, there have been reports of diplodiatipblight causing... Tipblight (Diplodia sapinea) has been documented on 20 pine species throughout the Central and Eastern United States, as well as California and Hawaii.Diplodiatipblight causes the most damage to trees that are old or weak. Disease name: Diplodiatipblight (formerly known as Sphaeropsis tipblight). Pathogen name: Diplodia pinea (syn. Sphaeropsis sapinea) (fungus). Hosts: Diplodiatipblight is a common fungal disease of pines with needles in bunches of 2’s and 3’s. Diplodiatipblight (previously called Sphaeropsis tipblight) is a common fungal disease of stressed conifers caused by the fungus Diplodia sapinea. Two-needled pines are most commonly infected, including Austrian or black pine (Pinus nigra), Mugo pine (P. mugo), ponderosa pine (P... Diplodiatipblight (formally known as Spheropsis) is caused by a fungal pathogen, Diplodia sapinea.What can be done about it? The best way to avoid diplodiatipblight is to not plant Austrian and Scotch pines, as these species are very susceptible to the fungus. A fungal disease primarily affecting pine species, causing tipblight and cankers. Most severe on trees planted outside their natural range and under stress conditions. The disease is rare in normal forest conditions but common in urban environments. In 2016 a whole Scots pine plantation infected with this pathogen was discovered in for the first time Sweden. Laura Brodde has investigated the establishment and spread of Diplodiatipblight in Sweden to increase our knowledge and opportunities to combat the disease. Figure 1. Diplodiatipblight infections occuring year after. year result in dieback of lower limbs and eventual death of. mature pines. Diplodiatipblight causes brown, stunted, or curled growth on the current year shoots in pine trees of all ages. Black fruiting bodies from the disease may be present in dead needles, shoot tissue, or on the needles of mature pines. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS. Diplodiatipblight is occasionally confused with environmental stress and/or pinetip moth damage.Several branches on the pine trees in this windbreak are flagging (wilting and browning) due to Diplodiatipblight and canker. Diplodiatipblight (formerly known as Sphaeropsis) can kill the current year’s infected needles and stems of over 20 pine species, mainly two- and three-needle pine in particular, including Scots, Austrian and Eastern white pine.
