The Old Folks Home

[CapricornFarm]

Yeah, poison ivy is interesting stuff. Missouri has over 17 varieties. Each and every one of them is sheer evil because some of them don't even look like typical poison ivy.

Copper is the treatment for fungal infections in trees. We have been using it to flight fire blight in our fruit trees for the past three years.

Some of the poison ivy vines here are as big around as a paint can and grow way up in trees!

 

[microchick]

We noticed some spotting on the fruit from spraying with copper. There is only so many times per season that you can spray your trees or bushes with it.

I'd have to look to see what the 'withdrawal' time is for fruit consumption. I know the spray I have to use on our blackberries for Spotted Winged Fruit Flies only has a 24 hour hold on it.

The bad thing about copper spray is that it will kill all the earth worms around the tree's parameter when you use it regularly.

The Fire Blight fungus stays in the soil also, which makes it almost impossible to eradicate. Plus it is carried by rain that is being blown by the wind. It's as bad as stinking Marek's and just about as impossible to treat.

We have lost about 6 trees to it so far in spite of treating. All we can do is cull and replace if it gets too bad and then replace the tree with one that is FB resistant. With fruit trees, the hybrids are the worse. Pear trees are very vulnerable. Yellow delicious, red delicious are more resistant and this year we will be planting Arkansas Blacks which are more resistant.

 

[ronott1]

We have a lot of poison oak here. It causes reactions from all parts of the plant including the roots. It can get into your lungs if you burn it too.

My Dad said there was poison sumac at the Sacramento River but I have never seen it so I do not know about it.

 

[chickadoodles]

Micro I did not know the fire blight stays in the soil. Dang.
I know the new trees and my elderberries will go in half barrels away from these others. I may lose my strawberries. I hope I don't lose my blueberries.

I will have to read up on which copper to get and how to use it.

 

[bruceha2000]

We have a lot of poison oak here. It causes reactions from all parts of the plant including the roots. It can get into your lungs if you burn it too.

My Dad said there was poison sumac at the Sacramento River but I have never seen it so I do not know about it.

Yeah NEVER burn poison ivy or poison oak.

 

[microchick]

We had a tree back in our pasture that had the most beautiful foliage on it. In the fall it turned a beautiful crimson color. We thought it was a red maple and had visions of trying to get sap out of it come spring. Then we got a closer look at it and realized that it wasn't a maple at all. It was a dead small hickory that was completely covered by poison ivy.

Needless to say it went away.

Fire blight is so nasty. When I prune off infected areas on a tree I have to carry a coffee can of water with a tablespoon of bleach in it and dip the pruning sheers and saws BETWEEN cuts. I can't even go from one branch to another without stopping and sanitizing my equipment. It gets to be pretty old after awhile especially when you realize that even with prevention when it comes to spread that it does little good. Once that fungus gets into the tree's circulatory system it is hard to root out.

The neighbor we have who is starting a winery suggested that we try pruning an infected tree we have back almost to the trunk and see what happens to the regrowth. He had one that he cut back tothe point that he was afraid that he had killed it and it came back and was never bothered by FB again.

I have three threes that we pulled this spring due to infection and I noticed that the roost stock is coming back. I think one is a Quince so I think I'm going to let it go and see what it produces. Quince is susceptible also so Idunno.

I've been trying to find the literature I read about the bacteria (FB is a bacteria, not a fungus, I just read and will respond to streptomycin spray along with copper) Sometimes all the different stuff I read is just plain confusing....spreading from soil contact but I cannot find it now. I know they told me to remove all the pruning branches and burn them and that the infection does get in the roots but I did just read that it will go dormant in winter.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Yeah NEVER burn poison ivy or poison oak.

The stuff in poison ivy apparently stays in the soil a long time too!

 

[CapricornFarm]

Beware, and warn others about heat lamp bulbs with TEFLON. They kill birds! One family lost 7 birds in a short period of time tonight!

 

[drumstick diva]

I know it's a bad word But the old Roundup for poison ivy and tough brush, really worked. It even killed English buckthorn that is invasive here. I see they came out with a new roundup weed killer with fertilizer for grass. I tried it - killed grass, weeds were fine.

 

[drumstick diva]

Lost a gorgeous crab tree to fire blight several years ago. Never tried any more.