symptoms
Symptoms
- circleSunken, discolored, or cracked lesions on bark, stems, or branches
- circleOozing sap or dark staining around the lesion
- circleDieback of the branch or stem beyond the canker site
help
Causes
Canker is a general term for localized bark and wood lesions caused by various fungal pathogens (such as Nectria or Cytospora) or, less commonly, bacteria, which typically enter through wounds, pruning cuts, or frost damage, especially on stressed plants.
healing
Treatment
Prune out affected branches well below the canker margin, disinfecting tools between cuts, and improve overall plant vigor to help it resist further infection.
shield
Prevention
Avoid wounding bark, prune during dry weather, and keep plants well watered and fed to reduce stress that predisposes them to infection.