Welcome to my TREEDOCTOR blog. This blog deals with the increasing threat to the world’s forests and tree plantations caused by insect pests and diseases caused by microbes. This might be a field that is new to you, or you could be a specialist that knows as much (or more) as I do regarding the topic. The upshot of the matter is that pests and pathogens (the agents causing disease) present one of the most serious threats to trees around the world. This is due largely to these agents being moved accidentally by humans and the products of our trade, to new environments. But the story is more complicated than this. Pests and pathogens are adapting to new environments, there is evidence that some are hybridizing to new and more devastating forms, and there is good evidence that global climate change is resulting in new and unexpected disease problems.
The aim of this blog is to share knowlege regarding pests and pathogens of trees as I move around the world to study them. There will be no particular shedule to post the blogs and the contents will range from quite specific and formal to general “musings” regarding the topic. The opinions presented will be my own and they will not necessarily be the same as those of other tree disease specialists. But your thoughts and opinions will be of interest.
