Unreal, but 100% of my sassafras trees are dead. I researched it and I think it said it's due to an invasive beetle from Asia that carries a fungus. Whatever it is, 100%? I say 100% because I have been through my 40-acre woodlot several times in the past two weeks and haven't seen a single live tree. I've probably seen a hundred or more dead. Bummer, makes me wonder if they would even ever come back. I can salvage a few that still have some burn value. I also lost a lot more dogwoods than usual. They are not a very hardy species here, they die often but now, I have lost a LOT. Unrelated to the sassafras is my guess. EDIT: This kill might be limited to the southeast USA, not sure.
Sorry to hear it. How easy is it to get sassafras seeds from other areas? I've never noticed any flowers or seeds on the small sassafras around here. I'll have to pay closer attention.
I found some cuttings for sale, that might work. But I have no idea if the fungus will just wipe out whatever I propagate. Roots, too, for sale but that is for making root beer, don't know if they would take root. Didn't find seeds for sale except on ebay but haven't spent a lot of time on it.
I found this online: Laurel Wilt | Forestry and Natural Resources Sounds terrible. I planted a couple sassafras along my property line last spring. I hope I get to enjoy them for a while before the fungus makes its way up here.
That sucks. Maybe that's what happened to mine. Though I blamed the vines taking over I do still have a few hanging on.
Too bad about that. The only positive is that sass is very rot resistant so they have an extended "shelf life" like the black locust around here. Dries fast too. Hopefully it doesn't make its way to the NE any time soon. Do burners care much about btu values there Bill? Or is wood, wood to them?
I had a couple of juvenile Sassafras die suddenly 2 summers ago and recall finding that information. I wanted to take samples to the extension service but there’s a $25 fee so I didn’t.
buZZsaw BRAD ... Brad, I find that the sassafras here are exactly the opposite of what you are seeing there... mine are anything but rot resistant. They go to mush quicker than any tree I have seen here. Mind you, the fungus might have affected it? You asked about people here and their BTU 'needs'... a few thoughts come to mind... first, some could not care less and I could mix it in with other hardwoods but many/most want or are expecting oak. Campfire / deer camp / firepit burners don't care. Second, I have seen the sassafras spark quite badly, throwing off chunks of embers, so, not good for homeowners. I have not had much sassafras to burn and have saved it for myself; the only reason I have had any is blowdowns, as I won't hardly cut any live tree unless it is in a location that it has to go. Although, I might change that in the future to thin some trees on my woodlot that are species I don't care for and are encroaching on favorite and beneficial species. Like, sweetgum... I don't have much reservation at all about cutting those, I have a bazillion. But I will not cut a giant one and I have some of those. Huge trees. It's weird to see a species of tree where you look across the woodlot and you have a 'grove' of trees (sassafras) and every tree is dead. I have several spots like this. There will be a bunch of them in one spot. It seems most of these horrific diseases, it kills trees on a more spaced out time period. I don't know if the dogwood kill is anything more than their usual non-hardiness, low survival rate, but not only have I lost a bunch in the past year, more so than usual, but I note some beauties on the road close to my woodlot that are also dead and these are large dogwoods. In my hometown, about the prettiest dogwood you'll ever see, I just noticed it's gone. My brother wants a dogwood taproot to make something, some kind of tool, and it's hard to find a stump on a dead dogwood that is worthy and not rotted. But again, disease might make this occur. He claims it's supposed to be super hard and I have always heard that but I note that the dead ones I salvage for firewood rot pretty quickly and you'd better 'harvest' them pretty quickly after they die and stack them.
I don't score a lot of it and I'd say it 50/50 on living ones of they are infested by ants in the center. Bl its maybe 1/3 in my experience. Maybe your humid climate has more of an effect on them? Maybe smaller trees less rot resistant? I learned of its rot resistance by accident. Had some logs uncut fro a score that sat for a couple years. Bark came loose and were dirty but wood was solid. I later learned more since I've become a member here. I've had some milled and intend to make some planters for oldest stepdaughter. One was a tree in her woods.
I confirmed today while in the woods that I have some newly hatched sassafras saplings, so, that is good. Now it'll be a wait to see if they survive.
Yep, there are a lot of deer here but I will have to just take my chances because it's just me and 57 acres! I spend a lot of time in my woodlot and it's amazing to me how much food is available to deer. No wonder there are so many. I don't hunt anymore but the season limit here is six and when I was a kid, it was one! I think there are states with a limit of ten and some, there is no limit. Lots of deer in the USA! I need to research it a bit and see if the beetles kill young saplings, too. A crime, if so!
