Sudden Oak Death Surveys: 2005 - 2020 | Cooperative Agricultural Pest Survey

Sudden Oak Death Symptoms Since 1995, large numbers of oaks and tanoaks have been dying in California. Since then, many other types of plants have been found to be infected or associated with this disease, referred to as sudden oak death, ramorum leaf blight or ramorum dieback, or by regulation asPhytophthora ramorum. Since April 2004, the disease has been confirmed in numerous West Coast counties.

Kentucky has been identified as a high risk area for sudden oak death because of the extensive oak forests within the state. This could have a severe effect on an economy that depends on the revenue generated from the sale of logs and wood products. Detections in nurseries that ship widely throughout the United States have increased concerns that this disease could appear in other U.S. nurseries and hence move to susceptible species in the surrounding environment. To address these concerns and because of the potential and documented movement of the disease on nursery stock, we surveyed nurseries in Kentucky for the presence of sudden oak death (Phytophthora ramorum) as part of a national survey for this disease.

We inspected high risk genera (Rhododendron, Pieris, Kalmia, Camellia, and Viburnum) for symptoms such as foliar blight and shoot dieback. Samples taken from suspicious plants were processed at the University of Kentucky Plant Pathology Diagnostic Laboratory in Lexington, KY.

Sudden Oak Death foliar

2020

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 24
Number of Plants Inspected: 2,282
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 122
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boyd, Calloway, Christian, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Greenup, Hardin, Henderson, Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Madison, Marshall, McCracken, Nelson, Oldham

2019

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 25 (plus two homeowner sites)
Number of Plants Inspected: 944
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 111
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Calloway, Fayette, Franklin, Hardin, Jefferson, Jessamine, McCracken, Muhlenberg, Shelby, Woodford

2018

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 30
Number of Plants Inspected: 2,290
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 165
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 6
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyd, Calloway, Campbell, Carter, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Greenup, Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Madison, McCracken, Nelson, Scott, Shelby

2017

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 24
Number of Plants Inspected: 1,625
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 98
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 8
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Barren, Boone, Boyd, Boyle, Calloway, Campbell, Carter, Fayette, Franklin, Grayson, Jefferson, Jessamine, McCracken, Nelson, Rowan, Warren

2016

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 30
Number of Plants Inspected: 2,177
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 126
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 17
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyle, Campbell, Carter, Clark, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Grayson, Greenup, Henderson, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Laurel, Mason, Nelson, Pike, Scott, Union, Warren

2015

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 30
Number of Plants Inspected: 1,658
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 123
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 18
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyle, Campbell, Carter, Christian, Clark, Fayette, Gallatin, Grayson, Greenup, Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Laurel, McCracken, Nelson, Oldham, Scott, Warren

2014

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 31
Number of Plants Inspected: 3,015
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 164
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 20
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyle, Campbell, Carter, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Hardin, Henry, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Laurel, Nelson, Oldham, Scott, Shelby

2013

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 35
Number of Plants Inspected: 4,738
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 284
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 20
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boyle, Breathitt, Campbell, Carter, Clark, Estill, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Greenup, Hardin, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Lincoln, Mason, Nelson, Oldham, Pulaski, Taylor, Washington

2012

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 50
Number of Plants Inspected: 4,985
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 255
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 34
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyle, Bullitt, Calloway, Campbell, Carter, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Graves, Grayson, Greenup, Henderson, Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Laurel, Lincoln, Mason, McCracken, Mercer, Nelson, Scott, Spencer, Taylor, Union

2011

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 20
Number of Plants Inspected: 3,602
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 114
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Campbell, Fayette, Jefferson, and Kenton

2010

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 40
Number of Plants Inspected: 2,470
Number of Foliar Samples Tested: 197
Number of Water Baiting Samples Tested: 29
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Bourbon, Boyle, Breathitt, Bullitt, Calloway, Clark, Daviess, Fayette, Franklin, Graves, Grayson, Henderson, Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Madison, Marshall, McCracken, Mercer, Muhlenburg, Nelson, Powell, Scott, Shelby, Union, Whitley

2009

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 20
Number of Plants Inspected: 2,349
Number of Samples Tested: 93
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Breathitt, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Hardin, Jefferson, Jessamine, McCracken, Meade, Nelson, Pulaski, Russell

2008

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 20
Number of Plants Inspected: 622
Number of Samples Tested: 91
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Calloway, Christian, Daviess, Graves, Hancock, Hardin, Henderson, Hopkins, Jefferson, Oldham, Union

2007

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 20 (plus samples taken from an additional 19 nurseries)
Number of Plants Inspected: 3,057
Number of Samples Tested: 149
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Boone, Boyd, Boyle, Breathitt, Bullitt, Campbell, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Jefferson, Johnson, Jessamine, Laurel, Nelson, Oldham, Pulaski, Scott, Shelby, Taylor

2006

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 21 (plus samples taken from an additional 14 nurseries)
Number of Plants Inspected: 10,353
Number of Samples Tested: 190
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Bath, Boone, Breathitt, Bullitt, Campbell, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Gallatin, Jefferson, Jessamine, Kenton, Laurel, Madison, Mercer, Nelson, Pulaski, Russell, Scott, Whitley, Woodford

2005

Number of Nurseries Surveyed: 99
Number of Positive Samples: 0
Counties Involved in the Survey: Barren, Boone, Boyd, Boyle, Breathitt, Butler, Calloway, Campbell, Christian, Clark, Daviess, Fayette, Fleming, Franklin, Hancock, Hardin, Henderson, Hopkins, Jefferson, Jessamine, Johnson, Kenton, Laurel, Lincoln, Madison, Marshall, McCracken, Meade, Mercer, Muhlenberg, Nelson, Pulaski, Rowan, Russell, Scott, Shelby, Simpson, Taylor, Warren