Ever since exiting dormancy my white pine started losing colour and then needles. The candles are growing and it’s using up water so it’s still alive. During winter i kept it in an unheated greenhouse. What should I do???
I don’t think it’s fungal, no dark spots no oozing on needles.
I’d say it’s a root related problem.
Watch the watering and examine the root system
I repoted it last spring into a 30/30/30mix and i’ve beed allowing the soil to dry out between the waterings. The needles had a good colour up until last month or so. The browning begins at the tip and then spreds throughout the needle.
Seems way to familiar, I lost 2 mugos the same way a few years back.
Keep it out of wind and watch the watering.
I couldn’t find anything wrong untill I lifted the tree out of the pot.
The roots were toas and it all happened in about a 2-4 week span.
Damnn that’s scary i’m really sorry for you. I’m a bit scared to pull the tree out of the pot since it’s been repotted just a year ago. I’ll put it on a heat mat tho just in case.
I’d get a couple more opinions before you took it out of your pot
1 Like
When pine needles die the problem is typically in the roots.
Fungal problems like needle blight are very different.
In San Francisco all white pines die within three years without exception. For me it’s a mild winter and cold summer.
Do Japanese white pine grow well in your area? Do others have success?
Generally when pines look sick the best thing to do is to dry them out. Make sure it’s not wet in the middle or in the bottom.
Check to see if you have dead roots. If you do you can send a sample of dead roots and soil to a local ag lab that can test for pathogens for around $100.
I would say 95% of my pine death were attributed to over watering or letting trees sit in the rain too long as the weather got warm. Fungal problems happen in warm humid environments.
You can try a ZeroTal dunk. This will kill all microorganisms. It can save and finish off trees.
Finally if you have some time consider this video of Jonas Dupuich talking about conifer health including disease and treatments.
Good luck