The Fire Blight Fight

Southwest Yard & Garden by Dr. Marisa Thompson

Drooping, necrotic tissue sampled from this pear tree was diagnosed with fire blight by the NMSU Plant Diagnostic Center.

Question:

I think my Asian pear might have fire blight. Can you tell from this branch? [Sample submitted with wilted, blackened leaves at tips of new growth. See photo below.]
                        -        Jade W., Albuquerque, NM

Sample from Asian pear tree in Albuquerque diagnosed with fire blight by the NMSU Plant Diagnostic Center.

Answer:

I couldn’t tell for sure from the sample, so I sent it to the NMSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic in Las Cruces (http://aces.nmsu.edu/ces/plantclinic/). Our NMSU Extension Plant Pathology Specialist Jason French explained how samples are analyzed in the lab when a bacterial infection is suspected. First, they excise a small amount of tissue at the margin of the infection (the intersection of healthy and symptomatic tissue). Then they macerate and streak the solution onto a specialized media in a petri dish. All of the work is done under sterile conditions. Within 24 to 48 hours, any bacterial growth colonies on the plate are tested further with a metabolite panel.

After diagnosing this Asian pear branch, they recommended NMSU Extension Guide A-230, “Fire Blight” (http://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_a/A230/welcome.html), for more information. From that, I learned all kinds of helpful tips, some of which I’ve included below.

Fire blight is “one of the oldest known bacterial diseases of plants.” The good news is that it only affects plants in the rose family. The bad news is that plant family includes lots of common ornamental and fruiting trees and shrubs, including apples and pears. There are a number of steps you can take to fight it.

In late winter, prune out branches with cankers (sunken, discolored areas that ooze when the bacterium is active—ewww). Be sure to clean pruning tools between cuts with a common household disinfectant like Lysol (I avoid bleach because it’s been proven to damage and corrode metal pruning equipment, which leaves tiny pock marks where bacteria can hide). Don’t compost those clippings.

In the growing season, active infections (like the branch you sampled) should be “removed at least 12–15 inches below the margin of the visible infection because the bacterium moves inside the plant ahead of visible symptom development.” Because this bacterium is more likely to infect new growth, remove suckers that sometimes sprout out at the trunk base. That new growth is more susceptible because it’s fast-growing, succulent tissue. “Therefore, avoid heavy applications of nitrogen fertilizers.”

Bactericides can be used to reduce infection spread, but proper timing is crucial. For example, treating symptomatic tissue with copper compounds at budbreak in late winter or during bloom time in spring can be effective, but less so later in the season, so routine spraying in the summer is not recommended. Additionally, as fruit are developing, copper compound sprays can cause russetting in fruit, which lowers market value. Russetting doesn’t affect fruit flavor, but the skin gets rough and shelf life can be shortened. After a hailstorm, however, bactericide application can reduce the spread of fire blight on an already infected tree. Always read the product label before use, and remember that just because a product is labeled as “natural” or “organic” doesn’t mean it’s necessarily safe to use without precautions like gloves or a face mask.

Jason French added, “The bacteria that causes fire blight is also spread by bees during spring pollination. This can be devastating to commercial growers. We are seeing a severe outbreak in northern New Mexico this year.” However, as we all know, bees are essential for pollination, so no one recommends trying to control bee populations for fire blight’s sake. Luckily, the copper compounds applied to plant tissue to slow the infection do not hurt bee populations.

If there are only a few affected branches, cutting the symptomatic tissues out (12-15 inches below the spot where symptoms are visible) is a good way to slow the pathogen from spreading further. Be sure to clean pruning equipment between cuts! (photo credit: NMSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic).

When fire blight is causing cankers on the trunk of the tree, like in this photo, the infection may have gotten too bad for any treatment or hope of recovery (photo credit: NMSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic).

Fire blight symptoms can be difficult to discern depending on what part of the tree is infected, especially on older plants, and also depending on both the plant and bacterial growth stages. The blackened, drooping leaves look a lot like tissue hit by a cold snap, but if you see those signs in late June, it might be a good idea to grab a sample and submit it to the NMSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic via your NMSU County Extension Office (http://aces.nmsu.edu/county/).

Send gardening questions to Southwest Yard and Garden - Attn: Dr. Marisa Thompson at desertblooms@nmsu.edu, or at the NM Desert Blooms Facebook page (@NMDesertBlooms)

Please copy your County Extension Agent (http://aces.nmsu.edu/county/) and indicate your county of residence when you submit your question!

For more gardening information, visit the NMSU Extension Horticulture page at Desert Blooms (http://desertblooms.nmsu.edu/) and the NMSU Horticulture Publications page at http://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_h/.

Marisa Y. Thompson, PhD, is the Extension Horticulture Specialist, in the Department of Extension Plant Sciences at the New Mexico State University Los Lunas Agricultural Science Center, office: 505- 865-7340, ext. 113.