Young stands are particularly susceptible to wildfire damage. Stands can be protected by establishing permanent firebreaks around them. Firebreaks 10 to 20 feet wide or wider can be sown in some type of permanent cover and serve a dual purpose as wildlife food plots. Once trees are old enough, a good prescribed burning program will reduce the chances of wildfire. The two most important diseases of loblolly pine are fusiform rust and annosus root rot.
Fusiform rust causes spindle-shaped swellings on the stem and branches.
In the spring, these swellings or cankers produce orange-colored spores. As the tree grows, the cankers may become sunken, causing the stem to weaken. Cankers wrapping more than halfway around the trunk may eventually kill the tree or cause it to break off in the wind. For best control, harvest diseased trees during normal thinning operations. If a canker covers less than 50 percent of the circumference of the stem, a tree may be left until the next thinning.