Fire blight, a bacterial disease affecting trees and shrubs in the rose family, has been seen in Trochu.
It affects primarily the rose family of trees and shrubs such as apple and crab apple, pear, mountain ash, cotoneaster, raspberry, flowering almond, and saskatoon. Symptoms include red or brown leaves that look ‘fire-scorched’, wilting in new growth, and bark cankers, which can indicate a more serious infection and can kill the tree.
To treat the disease you must prune and destroy all diseased wood. However, pruning can also be a means of transmission and tools must be sanitized as you prune. Diseased wood should be taken to the transfer site, please do not use it in mulch, compost or store as firewood or compost materials.
For more details and pruning guidelines, see here and here.
