Forest Pests: Insects, Diseases & Other Damage Agents

A Guide to Common Forest Pests in Georgia

Terry Price, Forest Health Specialist, Georgia Forestry Commission

Storm Damage

Storms of various types and intensities do considerable damage to forest stands in Georgia. Based on best estimates during the last decade, over 24.5 million board feet and 1.5 million cords of pine and hardwood were destroyed following 29 reported storms. Tornadoes occur more frequently than ice storms but do not cover as large an area. Georgia Forestry Commission records indicate that 28 tornadoes did an estimated $4.3 million of damage which averaged over $186,000 per occurrence. (1973-1986). However, four major ice storms occurring during the same period did over $26 million of damage or $6.5 million per occurrence.

Figure 70 - A 400 acre tract of upland hardwoods, shortleaf and Virginia pines damaged by hail, cerambycid beetles and pinewood nematodes. Photo by Bob McMurry, GFC

The areas of the State where the moderate to severe storms have occurred since 1973 are shown in figures 67-69. Numerous other tornadoes and ice accumulations occurred but did only light damage and were not recorded. As the records indicate, tornadoes occur more frequently during April and May and ice storms are more common during January and February.

Hail storms are usually associated with severe thunderstorms and occur more frequently during spring and summer. Most hail storms do very little noticeable damage to forests but occassionally will cause serious defoliation and branch damage. A hail storm in 1985 damaged about 400 acres of pine and hardwood in northeast Georgia (Figure 70). The damage was so severe that wood sawyers (Monochamus spp.) became epidemic in the pine. These insects are vectors of the pinewood nematode. The nematodes cause a wilt disease of pines. The entire area was clearcut due to the damages from the sawyers and nematodes.

Land managers can reduce the impacts of high winds and ice by regulating stand densities. Pine plantations in areas likely to be hit by ice should not be thinned more than one-third of the total basal area at a time. Short leaf and Virginia pines are more resistant to ice than loblolly. Loblolly should be maintained at denser stockings than shortleaf and Virginia pines. Slash and longleaf pines are very susceptible to breakage from ice accumulations and should not be planted north of a line extending through Muscogee, Bibb, and Richmond Counties, Georgia.

Pine stands that have been damaged by winds, hail or ice should be evaluated as soon as possible. Damaged trees should be salvaged to prevent pine bark beetles (see pine bark beetles).

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