Sunny skies. High 67F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph..

Clear. Low 49F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph.

Now, more than ever, the world needs trustworthy reporting—but good journalism isn’t free. Please support us by subscribing or making a contribution.

 The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is asking the public to check needle-bearing trees for signs of a harmful disease and report their findings to the department. 

Heterobasidion root disease (HRD) is a severe fungal infection that kills pines, spruces and other conifers in Wisconsin. This fall, watch for new, bright white growths on conifer bases, stumps, seedlings and saplings. To find the fungi, you may need to scrape away needles and other debris. The DNR maintains an online map with all known locations of HRD. Please report suspected cases to your local forest health specialist. 

HRD can spread through connected conifer roots below ground and often shows up as clumps of trees that seem to die off one by one. The fungi are most visible on seedlings, saplings and tree stumps. HRD is a rot fungus that decays the wood of the roots and lower stem, so infected trees may have stringy yellow rot that causes the stems to break off.

Preventing HRD is critical because it is challenging to control once it is established in conifer forests. New infections are most common when spores from nearby fungi land on freshly cut stumps, so using preventative fungicides on freshly cut conifer stumps is the best way to protect Wisconsin’s forests from HRD. Fungicides are mixed in water, so application is not possible when temperatures are below freezing. 

HRD is not the only health issue impacting pines. Several other insect and disease issues cause similar symptoms, so it’s important to correctly diagnose the cause of pine mortality before deciding on the best management approach.

More information about HRD and other conifer diseases is on the DNR’s Heterobasidion root disease webpage.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.

Check your email for details.

Invalid password or account does not exist

Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.

An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.