Preliminary report of ecological factors influencing incidence and severity of beech bark disease in the Appalachian region
McCann DP and MacDonald WL. 2013. Preliminary report of ecological factors influencing incidence and severity of beech bark disease in the Appalachian region. Pages 169-181. In McCann DP and MacDonald WL (ed): 18th Central Hardwood Forest Conference. Morgantown, WV. March 26-28, 2012. U.S. Forest Service. Newtown Square, PA. General Technical Report NRS-P-117
Resistance to Cryptococcus fagisuga, a primary component of the beech bark disease (BBD) complex, is heritable. Reportedly about 1-2 percent of American beech (Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) are genetically resistant to C. fagisuga. ! is project is designed to identify environmental factors contributing to BBD incidence and severity. Plots were established in stands with endemic BBD and a disease-free beech component. To date 1,479 beech trees have been sampled; 55 percent were scale-free or have trace infestation, and 79 percent were free of Neonectria infection. Twenty parameters were evaluated for correlations with infestation/infection. Correlation matrices identified factors possibly contributing to infestation and infection. ! e strongest correlations with infestation were slope (r= -0.235) and species composition of the canopy (r = -0.187). Beech height and Neonectria infection had the strongest correlation (r = 0.420); slope had the strongest negative correlation with infection (r = -0.344). Regression analyses estimated scale infestation was aff ected only by canopy composition (p = 0.034). Infection was impacted by beech height (p = 0.031), slope (p = 0.033), and ground coarse woody debris (CWD) species (p = 0.0001). Results indicate BBDfree beech appear on the landscape at rates much greater than expected, suggesting that environmental factors may infl uence disease incidence and severity.
- Type
- Conference Proceeding Paper
- Authors
- McCann, David; MacDonald, William
- Units
- GRSM
- Keywords
- American beech, APHN, Appalachian Highlands Network, beech bark disease, Cryptococcus fagisuga, Fagus grandifolia, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, GRSM, GRSM-01040, Neonectria, SER, Southeast Region