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Sunday - June 26, 2011

From: Seattle, WA
Region: Northwest
Topic: Trees
Title: Root rot in trees near Lake Wenatchee State Park, WA
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

Lake Wenatchee State Park, WA has been closed due to root rot for a year. I own a cabin 1 mile from the State Park. I cannot find a single piece of information about whether private property near the State Park also needs to be checked to see if trees on it have root rot. Specifically I want to know if I should be checking MY trees for root rot. And if so: who do I call, what does it cost, how is the testing done? It seems like if the root rot was serious enough to shut down two state parks at Lake Wenatchee that are 2 miles apart, that root rot would also be a problem for individual property owners too.

ANSWER:

You are wise to be concerned about the health of your trees; but, since we are located in the middle of Texas, you should be asking someone in the state of Washington for answers to your questions. Your first choice should be the Washington State University Forest and Wildlife Extension Service. Here are a couple of articles from this organization about several types of root rot: "ARMILLARIA ROOT ROT, SHOESTRING ROOT ROT, HONEY MUSHROOM" and "LAMINATED ROOT ROT, YELLOW RING ROT". They will know what root rot is involved at Lake Wenatchee State Park, whether you need to be concerned about your trees, and who you should contact to examine and possibly treat them.

Since Lake Wenatchee State Park is in Chelan County, you might also consider contacting the Chelan-Douglas County Extension Office of the Washington State Extension Service.