Pine wilt is caused by the pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, a microscopic (1 mm long), worm-like animal, which is moved from infested to non-infested pine trees by the pine sawyer beetle (Monochamus spp.). (A Pine Sawyer Beetle Grub is shown photo right.)

When a pine dies suddenly, especially a Scots (Scotch) pine, pine wilt is a leading suspect. Entire windbreaks or plantings may be lost to pine wilt within a few years. (photo below right)

Sanitation is the most important management practice to prevent or slow the spread of pine wilt. Currently, no chemicals are available to control the nematode or the beetle. To limit the spread of pine wilt to nearby healthy trees, diseased trees must be removed and destroyed before the beetles emerge from the wood.

REMOVE DEAD TREES BY MAY 1

Pine sawyers are inactive in winter, so if you find dead trees after October 1, they do not need immediate removal, but they must be removed and destroyed by May 1

Do not hold the wood for firewood.

From May 1 to October 1 dead and dying pines should be cut down promptly and burned, buried, or chipped.

Resources:

Pine Wilt Disease - University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension in Lancaster County

Pine Wilt In Nebraska - University of Nebraska

Pine Wilt: A fatal disease of exotic pines in midwest (Joint publication from University of Nebraska, Iowa State University, Kansas State University, University of Missouri-Columbia)

Destroy Dead Pine Trees by May 1 - University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension in Saline County