Residents in the town of Greece have been asked to be on the lookout for a fungus that is often fatal to oak trees.
A red oak tree in the town tested positive for oak wilt after a homeowner noticed discolored leaves falling to the ground in mid-June. This is the first known case of oak wilt reported in Monroe County.
The fungus blocks the flow of water and nutrients in the tree, causing its leaves to suddenly turn brown, wilt, droop, and fall off during the summer months.
The disease spreads primarily through beetles that are drawn to fresh wounds on a tree's bark. The fungus also can spread to nearby oaks through an underground root system.
One way to protect trees from infection is to avoid pruning during the spring and summer.
"If you cannot damage your oak trees during those months, you really lower your risk of getting infections," said Rob Cole, a forester with the New York state Department of Environmental Conservation. "If there's no wounds on the trees, the insects aren't attracted to it to bring the oak wilt fungus with them. So we recommend any pruning that people have done, they do that in the fall or over the winter."
Town Supervisor Jeffrey McCann said in a statement that the town is working with the state to remove the infected tree to prevent further spread.
Meanwhile, the town is asking residents — particularly those living in the area west of Interstate 390 to Long Pond Road, and south of English Road to Vintage Lane — to be aware of signs of infected oak trees in their neighborhood.
If a tree appears to be infected, residents are asked to take photos and report the finding to the DEC through an online form, or call the DEC Forest Health Information Line at 866-640-0652.
According to the DEC, oak wilt was first detected in New York in 2008. Infected trees have been reported in Ontario, Yates, Schenectady, Suffolk and Kings counties.
Cole said the fungus has been relatively well contained.
“We've seen it spread around a couple miles in in these locations, as opposed to Emerald Ash Borer, which moved through the entire state over the course of maybe a decade," he said. "This does not move like that. It won't spread nearly as quickly."
