Some Problems for Our Native Trees

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Tree Insects

Ok now, I'm not a tree hugger.  And, I don't want to sound like the voice of doom and gloom, and I sure don't want to come off as one of those weenies that would spike a tree and kill a logger just to save a tree.  But,...  Our trees are having some problems.  Logging, clear cutting, forest fires, native and non-native insects, plants, disease and other factors are all taking a toll. 

Non-native plants are by far the most common problem.  The can crowd out and smother native plants.  Typically, it happens when the environmental conditions are right for plant growth and there's few (or no) natural controls on the invading plants.  For anyone who's ever seen a kudzu patch, you know what I'm talking about.  If you happen to be from Georgia and you want a chuckle, take a look at the vine that ate the South.  Some other non-native, invasive plants that smother native plants are: Autumn-Olive, Asiatic Bittersweet, Japanese Barberry, Japanese Knotweed, Multiflora Rose, and several others.

Another culprit is non-native pests.  European Gypsy Moth, Balsam Woolly Adelgid, Hemlock Woolly Adelgid, and Asian longhorned beetle are just a few.  For more information on forest insects in the south, check the U.S. Forest Service insects page.

Of course, tree disease also plays a part.  Chestnut Blight, Dutch Elm Disease, White Pine Blister Rust, Butternut Canker, Beech Bark Disease and Leaf Blight are but a few.  A good place to start learning about tree diseases in the south is U.S. Forest Service diseases page or follow the links at your left.

Logging and clear cutting is yet another problem.  Most of the "old" trees are gone now.  The United States has already lost well over 90% of its old growth forests.  However, some do exist and you can visit old-growth.org to find a few in the eastern U.S.  Some of the finest old growth forest left in the United States are located in the Great Smoky Mountains.  The virgin stands of old-growth trees that exist in the Smokies today are there because the lumber companies simply couldn't get to the trees to cut them down.  Their future was secured when the Great Smoky Mountains National Park was established.