Re: Bursting Punica
Karl Hoover wrote:
>
> Sounds like mechanical damage; perhaps caused by
> a dog or a pig or an especially bad child
> else maybe a weed-wacker.
> Karl.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-medit-plants@ucdavis.edu
> [o*@ucdavis.edu]On Behalf Of iberbier@cgac.es
> Sent: Friday, June 09, 2000 1:09 AM
> To: Medit-plants
> Subject: Bursting Punica
>
> Hello all. I planted three young Punica granatum, three to four foot
> tall, last year. Shortly after going into leaf two of them have
> apparently "burst" a couple of inches above the root crown. The bark has
> split and a section has peeled and curled up, cinnamon stick-like,
> exposing the wood underneath. One of them has totally lost a ring of
> bark and seems to be dying. The other has developed a tumor-like growth
> and is hanging on, although it's lost a lot of leaves. Is this a fungal
> infection. Any ideas? How can I protect the survivor?
Hi Damien
Another possibility is some sort of borer damage. I saw this happen
years ago with an apple tree in my own garden in which a large branch
was completely girdled and died and also much more recently on several
Oriental Plane trees in our local park, which were ringbarked a short
way up the stem by (as the Parks Department confirmed) the tunnelling
of a local moth. Each of these trees had lost its top as a result, but
was sprouting vigorously from below the tunnel.
I fear though the turmor-like growth _does_ suggest a pathogen. A faint
possibility would be a bacterium such as the organism which is
responsible for crown gall, though I have never heard of this leading to
ringbarking.
I fear you may have to write off both your diseased Punicas unless
someone can come up with a firm diagnosis.
From the sound of them I think you would be well advised to dig both
out _and_dispose of them as soon as possible before the third one also
becomes infected with whatever it is. It might also be wise to either
change part of the soil from each site or put any new pomegtanates
elsewhere on your property.
Moira
--
Tony & Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz>
Wainuiomata, New Zealand. (on the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
Lat. 41:16S Long. 174:58E. Climate: Mediterranean/Temperate
