If you have a small garden, enough for fruit trees, the most normal thing is that you have some to enjoy freshly picked food from the tree. If one of them is an apple tree, knowing what are the diseases of the apple tree, both in its trunk and in the leaves and fruits can help you to last much longer.
For this reason, on this occasion, we are going to stop and tell you about the possible diseases of the trunk of the apple tree that you are going to face.
Basidiomycetes
This weird name actually refers to a fungus. A priori, it is not a very dangerous disease of the trunk of the apple tree, especially since affects only the dead parts of the treeso if they are removed there would be no problem.
Now, it is not that we want to say that it is good. Actually, if they proliferate through the trunk, they can cause problems.
Visually, you can tell about these mushrooms because white spots will appear on the trunk. If they grow, they will do so in a concave way, in such a way that they will look like shells attached as if they had a suction cup in the part that joins them to the trunk.
If they are not treated and are active, they can end up growing a lot. and, ultimately, by making them proliferate.
As for their treatment, they must be removed from the trunk, especially if that area cannot be cut, to prevent them from wreaking havoc in the area. As we tell you, it is not dangerous, but it can be.
Chancre
This disease of the trunk of the apple tree also attacks the branches, and it is one that must be protected. In fact, it usually occurs when the tree is not well cared for, and it is that It attacks the most woody areas or those with wounds, leaf scars, trunk breaks…
What this fungus does is penetrate inside through these wounds and it creates depressions inside that crack and go outside as well as deepen inside. In fact, it ends up leaving the wood exposed. But worst of all, these depressions become so large that they prevent the sap from reaching that part of the tree, and with it that part dies.
Although it is said that this disease is not “dangerous”, the truth is that it is, especially if it appears in parts of the trunk that call into question the survival of branches or part of the trunk itself.
And how to fix it? If possible, it should be cutting the branch below that canker, but also burning it to prevent it from spreading to other trees or areas of the same apple tree. The wounds that occur to the tree with this pruning must be protected to prevent the fungus from entering again.
In the event that it cannot be cut (because it affects the trunk itself), the solution is to make a deep cleaning of those wounds and of the canker itself to remove it, even cutting certain parts, with the aim of applying disinfectants and other fungal products to treat the fungus in situ.
yellow drill
Among the many diseases of the apple tree trunk, this is perhaps one of the most dangerous because it affects the tree very drastically. Above all, it attacks young specimens and is characterized because this parasite starts with a hole in the trunk (also on the branches).
Inside, it begins to dig, always upwards, in such a way that it empties the tree. Not only that, but you can make a cocoon and emerge as a butterfly, leaving a clutch of thousands of eggs to continue “consuming” the apple trees.
How to solve it? There are two methods. The first is to insert a wire through the entrance hole to “reach” the caterpillar and pull it out. Another method is to directly prune the damaged part, although this will largely depend on where the entrance is.
apple snake
We talk about a very common pest on apple trees, but in those that are neglected a lot. It mainly affects the branches and the trunk and does so through the lepidosaphes ulmi or mytilococcus ulmi.
You can detect it because the larva, which is the one that attacks the most, is long and yellow. At first it moves along the trunk or branch, until it attaches itself to it and sticks its stiletto to feed on the apple tree. In addition, it creates a shield around itself to prevent other insects from attacking it and thus protects itself until it becomes an adult. The shell will remain attached (because it protects the eggs until they hatch).
To treat it, you must first know that, in a certain way, does not usually cause damage, so it can be left alone (it’s part of nature). But if you do not want this to appear, you can apply some treatment with mineral oils on the trunk and branches.
papyraceous canker
We cannot say that it is a particularly dangerous apple trunk disease. Actually in most cases only It produces the desiccation of the external wood and that it separates from the tree.
Its cause can come from various parasitic fungi, but also from bacteria. For this reason, in order to know how to treat it beforehand, it is necessary to determine what has caused it (through laboratory analysis) in order to obtain the best to apply it to the tree and stop this problem.
But, as we tell you, this disease in itself does not affect the tree too much, although it does expose it to other problems (and diseases).
little bull
It is a plague that, if it is solitary, does not have to cause problems; but if it proliferates a lot yes it will cause injuries and especially the wilting of the tree because it prevents the passage of the sap.
This bug measures between 8 and 10mm. It is green and has bumps on each side of its thorax. The female makes incisions in the wood, quite deep, to be able to lay the eggs in them. If those incisions reach the liber, then the tree will be in trouble because it will prevent the sap from flowing correctly.
To treat it, chemical products are useless, and the only thing is remove those damaged areas, as well as cleaning everything around to prevent more parasites of this type.
Do you know of any other apple tree trunk diseases that can compromise the tree?
