Just noticed this today on 4 of 6 that I recently order. Wondering if anyone can confirm if it’s scale and best treatment?
That looks like Bristlecone doing what they do. They leak sap from the needles that turns white when it crystallizes. It’s too early in the season for scale as far as I know.
I appreciate the insight, I had no clue that was a thing. I treated them with neam oil before I saw your response.
Run a fingernail along the needle and scrape several off. Are they hard white crystaline, or soft fluffy and mushy?
This time of year, they might be overwintering bugs / egg cases. Especially if they are new to your garden.
I would continue treating. Palative treatment. A spray of a systemic. The Neem oil might be effective… every week… untill early sumer. Neem will take time to be effective.
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Rem: do NOT overwater bristlecones…
Bonsai On.
I’ve been battling scale on a JBP. Looking at your pictures, the wite spots do look different than what I’m seeing on my tree. The scale I’m seeing are not bumpy, they are smooth and oval shaped and have a very low profile because they stick down tight to the needle.
I also recommend trying to rub your nail along the needle to see what happens. I’ve been doing this to remove scale. The little suckers are tough to remove with your nail, if your white spots come off easy maybe its a indication they may not be scale. Also, after successfully removing a half dozen or so I’ll start to get a small amount of squished bug goo on my finger; I’ll still see the white scales on my fingers but there will also be some squished bug soup. If you are not seeing any squished bug residue maybe this is another clue. Hope it’s not scale, good luck!
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This was more crystalized than soft so thinking it is “what bristlecones do”! I will do a second treatment with the neam in 10 days and keep an eye on it but I much less concerned. Thanks for everyone’s help!
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Normal appearance of bristlecone needles, mine looks the same.
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