However, these mites continue to spread throughout the region. Contact your local county extension agent to determine if rosette buds are a problem in your area. The RBM damages the tree by entering newly developing growth and spending their entire life inside the new buds.
Mites feeding on the interior of the bud cause it to become distorted.
The shoot for next year is destroyed in the process. The effect of heavy infestations on a tree is dramatic, creating stunted, uneven growth. It can reduce tree quality and grade considerably. Rosette buds are large, rounded buds on the terminals of Fraser fir branches that either fail to break in the spring, or else break to form multiple, small shoots. Pest description .