Florida Scientists Struggle To Save State Tree
Scientists are working to try to better understand how an unknown disease is targeting Florida’s state tree.
An increasing number of sabal palm trees in the Tampa Bay area have already died due to the mysterious unidentified disease. It may take scientists years to determine the disease, and even more time to reveal which insects are spreading it.
"It’s not simply a matter that we will be able to eradicate," said Monica Elliott, a University of Florida plant pathologist. "That’s not very likely."
Known as cabbage palms, sabal palm trees can grow up to 50 feet. They thrive in marshes and woodlands, and are primarily found from regions in the Florida Keys to parts of North Carolina. The tree has become the state tree of both Florida and South Carolina, and is featured in Florida’s state seal.
Tim Schubert, an administrator and pathologist in Florida’s Division of Plant Industry, said it’s impossible to say what the disease’s eventual effect on the state’s sabal palms will be but "it’s not going to be good."
"There’s going to be fewer palms. They may present a less attractive tree in nature because of this new disease showing up," he said.
Trees in Florida have suffered from similar attacks in the past. The state’s orange and citrus trees are being attacked by canker and greening, which scientists have been unable to stop.
The mysterious disease is also killing off a number of Canary Island date palms and queen palms from within. The disease is hard to pinpoint as its characteristics are often confused with nutrient deficiencies or excessive trimming.
It is a phytoplasma disease, which means it is a very small bacterium that doesn’t have a cell wall. And it can only be transmitted through a plant’s phloem, a type of transport tissue similar to veins in a human. The disease has likely found its way to sabal palms’ phloem by either a tree- or leaf-hopping insect.
The disease is hitting the state during a tight budget year and University of Florida research funding has taken a hit. Officials can still turn to federal and private grants, and a proposal to dip into a small emergency fund is being considered, said Jack Battenfield, a spokesman for UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
"We don’t have some of the freedoms we might have had before," Battenfield said. "The budget’s tighter. We’ve got to look at things we can do most effectively, most efficiently, and have the biggest impact."
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