Dwarf mistletoe-induced mortality in northwest ponderosa pine growing stock

Abstract

After the careful removal of a ponderosa pine overstory infested with western dwarf mistletoe, the development of small poles and saplings in the infested residual thickets was followed in 48 plots over a period of 27 yr. The high incidence of mortality caused by mistletoe, which has not been previously reported to occur in significant amounts in Northwest ponderosa pine growing stock, was surprising and is important to management of the species. Death of 73, 38, 24 and 17% of the trees, respectively, occurred in the unthinned plots and those thinned to 500, 250, and 125 trees/ac. West.