Sudden Oak Death Treatment
Sudden oak death (SOD) is a forest disease affecting oak trees provoked by an exotic pathogen that has killed hundreds of thousands of native trees in California. The disease is caused by a deadly microorganism called Phytophthora ramorum, which was first discovered in California in 1995. In numerous North American and European countries, the virus has been found in bays, blueberries, horse chestnuts, rhododendrons, camellias, and other ornamental and landscape plants. The fungus is so dangerous that the recent outbreaks of SOD on Japanese larch have required cutting thousands of trees. The only completely reliable way to confirm a P. ramorum infection or sudden oak death is to take a sample and analyze the tissue of the affected plant in laboratory conditions.
