Conifers A number of Austrian pine samples have been submitted to thePlant Disease Clinic recently showing Dothistroma needle blight,Diplodia tip blight, or both diseases. Theses diseases are acommon problems on Austrian pine and are fairly easy to recognize. Dothistroma needle blight , which occurs primarily on Austrian,ponderosa, and mugo pines in Iowa usually occurs first on lowerbranches. Infected needles show yellow to reddish-brown spots orbands that extend around the needles. Needles die from the bandedarea to the tip.
Diseased needles drop prematurely.
Diplodia tip blight is most common on Austrian and ponderosapines in Iowa but also occurs on Scots, mugo, and red pine. Themost obvious symptom of tip blight is stunted, brown shoots withshort needles. In the fall, small black fruiting structures of thefungus usually can be seen on needle bases. Small black fruitingstructures also appear on scales of infected cones. The annualdestruction of buds and shoots gradually causes tree decline.