Anthracnose Dogwood Tree Leaves Curling

Treat with copper based.

Anthracnose dogwood tree leaves curling. Symptoms begin on leaf borders with purplish blotches that eventually cover the leaf. Kousa dogwood cornus kousa which grows in usda zones 5 through 8 typically shows higher disease. It infects and kills the leaves and young shoots of some north american cornus species dogwoods cornus florida is particularly susceptible cornus nuttallii and cornus kousa may also be attacked. But you can rest assured your tree won t look disfigured forever if you keep up with fungicide applications to keep your tree from being reinfected the next spring the new growth will be.

Caused by the fungus discula destructiva anthracnose thrives in moist shade. For example pacific dogwood cornus nuttallii is a california native. What is cornus anthracnose. Dogwood anthracnose is the most common disease that affects dogwood trees.

Drought and winter injuries weaken trees and the anthracnose fungus mostly attacks during the cool wet spring and fall weather but it can occur during any season. Department of agriculture plant hardiness zones 2 through 9 depending on species. Generally white dogwood cultivars are more susceptible to spot anthracnose than pink cultivars. The many graceful shapes of dogwoods cornus spp are known throughout u s.

Other dogwood diseases such as those caused by septoria cornicola species pathogens may also show leaf spotting symptoms similar to anthracnose but they do not cause cupped or curled leaves. How to treat a dogwood with leaf wilt. Brown or black lesions on leaves stems flowers fruits and other plant parts may be symptoms of anthracnose. However the damage that is already done to the tree s leaves and stems can not be reversed which is why prevention is so important when it comes to fungal diseases especially dogwood anthracnose.

Curled wilted or distorted leaves along with dark or tarlike spots are common symptoms of dogwood anthracnose. Leaf curl on dogwoods is essentially a protective reaction to stress the tree feels. Leaf scorch is a common problem in dogwood tress and a sign that your tree is under water stress. If you have a dogwood showing significant leaf curl throughout the summer 5 years or longer beyond when you planted it keep.

This disease can spread up the leaf stem and infect the twigs bark and trunk eventually killing the tree if left untreated. But not all anthracnose is created equal. The dogwood cornaceae family is a hardy tree with various cultivars and species. Cornus anthracnose is a fungal disease caused by discula destructiva which arrived in the uk from north america in the late 1990s.

Rather than keep its leaves flat and susceptible to burning in the summer sun dogwoods curl their leaves to minimize leaf surface area and thus minimize any damage they might receive.