13 Pests and Diseases that Affect a Pecan Tree
Quick repair on cut and damaged limbs is necessary when you grow a pecan tree. Fast action can prevent pests and diseases from getting into the damaged tree. There are several pests common to pecans which can kill or severely hurt them.
Common Pests and Diseases in Pecans
- Pecan Weevil- light brown or grayish beetle that feeds on pecans, causing both nutdrop and kernel damage
- Yellow Pecan Aphid- this pest's honeydew secretions support growth of sooty mildew
- Pecan Scab- fungicide disease characterized by black or olive brown colored spots on nuts and leaves
- Pecan phylloxera- small, aphid-like pest that causes gall on pecan leaves and limbs
- Pecan nut casebearer- most prevalent pecan pest, this insect's larva burrows into nutlets after pollination, destroying kernels
- Twig Girdlers- these insects bite into pencil-sized limbs, "girdling" them so that the limbs often break under weight of nuts
- Leaf blotch- a fungus that only attacks unhealthy pecan trees
- Mold and mildew- a fungal disease characterized by white, powdery growth on leaves and nuts
- Crown gall- soil dwelling microbe that enters pecans through cuts or wounds in the tree and causes galls on the crown where the trunk and roots join
- Cotton root rot- a fungus that rots the roots of pecan trees, killing them
- Pecan webworm- moths which feed on foliage of pecan trees, growing in webs as larva/caterpilars before cocooning and hatching as moths
- Powdery mildew- dusty white to gray fungus that stunts growth
- Sooty mold- black fungus that grows on honeydew secreted by aphids
