Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Wooly Pine Scale



Snow? No. (It's Alabama in July.)

A heron's been sitting overhead? No. (Above us only sky.)

The strange white goop on this small Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda) turned out to be Woolly Pine Scale (Pseudophilippia quaintancii).

According to ACES (Alabama Cooperative Extension System), small periodic infestations are not harmful to unstressed trees.

Of course due to a late spring freeze and the recent early summer drought, pretty much everything in north Alabama is stressed.

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Pine Needle Scale (Chionaspis pinifoliae) is another scale insect that looks like white gunk on pine needles.

5 comments:

KFarmer said...

I've seen that here, but did not know what it was. Thanks for the info. I thought it was heron poo and did not get too close to investigate :)

Ava said...

Good morning to you! I hope that all is well and you have a great day!

That looks really gross!

MamaHen said...

Boy, I'm stressed; you got that right!

Rurality said...

KF I'd never noticed it before, but we don't have too many pines here.

Hi Ava, thanks for dropping by! Yeah I have to admit that I didn't touch it. :)

Annie, I think it's going around. :)

KFarmer said...

We have them growing like weeds here and pull them up :)

(: In the pines, in the pines, where the sun never shines; and you shiver when the cold wind blows... :)