The Forestry Forum

General Forestry => Ask The Forester => Topic started by: tj240 on March 24, 2014, 11:51:03 AM

Title: red rot
Post by: tj240 on March 24, 2014, 11:51:03 AM
the job we are on is mostly pine that look great, but some [alot] have red rot the lot was high graded years ago. i think it could be the minerals in the ground alot of ledge. our forester is still tring to figure it out
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: timberking on March 24, 2014, 12:00:56 PM
Sounds like red heart. 
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: curdog on March 24, 2014, 12:20:43 PM
Yeah I agree with red heart, our white pine plantations get it quite often when planted off site. The natural white pine isn't as bad for it.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: Texas Ranger on March 24, 2014, 12:27:34 PM
tj240,  welcome aboard, fill out your particulars and let us know what part of the world you are in.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: tj240 on March 25, 2014, 05:02:40 PM
the white pine we have does not have red heart it is red rot, forester says can be caused by over crowding, stress, or minerals. also could be caused by root damage from previous jobs from skidding causing root damage.  i am from northern new york, southern adirondacks.  thanks for your in put.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: tj240 on March 25, 2014, 05:04:44 PM
sorry i ended early the red rot im talking about usually doesnt show at the but or in the heart
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: Texas Ranger on March 25, 2014, 10:43:13 PM
http://www.nrs.fs.fed.us/pubs/rn/frn_ne68.pdf
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: jwilly3879 on March 26, 2014, 07:19:52 AM
Thanks,

A good article. There has been a lot of good info gathered at the Pack Forest in Warrensburg and I have been there several times.

The red rot in our trees seems to be worse where a spike knot occurs which is supported by the article.

Here's a picture of some rot that has traveled from a spike knot further up the tree. There was no sign of rot in the butt.



 (https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/27393/SAM_0219.JPG)

It does not always make it to the center. From reading the article it would seem that the infection travels to the origin of the diseased branch and then up and down through that growth ring.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: tj240 on March 26, 2014, 10:27:27 AM
those pics from jwilly are our trees just wondering if anyone else has this problem. something interesting to talk about
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: Texas Ranger on March 26, 2014, 10:40:29 AM
Not familiar with this particular rot, but looks to be encapsulated withing a few growth rings.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: jwilly3879 on March 26, 2014, 04:03:13 PM
We sent some to the mill and when they opened them up about 4' in the middle of a 16 was rotted to within 2" of the outside (on a 16" log).

I'll get some better pictures this weekend of the logs in the reject pile. They were too nice to pulp so I have a friend with a bandmill that will saw them.There is a lot of good lumber in them but it doesn't pay the commercial mill to try and saw around the rot. Even the boards with some rot make nice woodshed siding.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: snowstorm on March 26, 2014, 07:16:13 PM
we always called it pencil rot.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: Peter Drouin on March 27, 2014, 06:39:40 AM
Sometimes the rot will be 2" on the end and 10" in the middle of a 14" log. I buy some , but I will only pay for ½ the scale of the log. There have been times I could not get good wood from the log and lost the money I paid for ½ the bf. So i'm careful on what I buy.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: Phorester on April 01, 2014, 11:47:00 AM

A good find on that research report, TR.  I have always wondered if the white pine weevil was causing damage to white pines other than the crooked trunk tha results from killing the terminal (we call it weevil wobble  ;D).  Figured the tree would have a rotten spot at the location of the dead top, but didn't suspect it would create a rot that would go through the entire tree.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: snowstorm on April 01, 2014, 06:01:57 PM
most of the pine with pencil rot that i have cut were tall with very little crown. they were not pasture pine = weevil pine
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: jwilly3879 on April 01, 2014, 10:14:06 PM
Some of ours are like that, tall, small crowns and growing close together one tree may have it and the ones close to it will be fine, just no way to tell. On the larger full crown trees it is usually around a spike knot.

I'm glad we got this job on % basis, could have lost a bunch on a lump sum.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: hacknchop on April 01, 2014, 11:58:37 PM
I spent 3yrs sawing cull white pine in the bush north of  Sault Ont.we found the butt logs with the rot in the heart sawed out quite well 30% sel&btr whereas the logs with the  rot running throughout the sapwood even sparsely gave poor grade but higher yield giving us a#4&#5com.
Title: Re: red rot
Post by: jwilly3879 on April 06, 2014, 08:26:26 PM
The mill buying our pine will take the bigger logs as long as the rot is centered. He doesn't want anything with red in the sapwood. Like he said, "I can only sell so many form boards."