However, red oaks are most susceptible and can die in as little as one month after being infected. For red oaks, pale young green or brown leaves can be observed during the spring in infected trees.Īll oaks are susceptible to oak wilt disease. Oak wilt foliar symptoms are different from this seasonal transition in that they affect every leaf.

During the spring, evergreen oak trees will shed their old leaves, while simultaneously growing new leaves. Oak wilt is often detected by yellow to brown veins in leaves of infected live oak trees. With a fruity smell, these mats attract small, sap-feeding beetles that can later fly to a fresh wound of any oak tree and infect it, starting a new oak wilt center.Īny new wound can be an entry point for infection including those produced by pruning, construction activities, livestock, land or “cedar” clearing, lawnmowers, string trimmers and storms. To decrease the attractiveness of fresh wounds to insects, always paint wounds on oaks, no matter the time of the year. In the spring, red oaks that died of the disease last summer and fall may produce spore mats under the bark. Oak wilt spreads easiest between February and June because of high fungal mat production, high insect populations and the high susceptibility to disease for oaks. “This native fungus has been affecting oaks for decades in Texas prevention and early detection are vital to stop the spread,” said Texas A&M Forest Service regional forest health coordinator, Demian Gomez. Texas Oak Wilt (Texas A&M Forest Service photo)

Hoa covenant oak wilt