
Dwarf mistletoe detection and management in Minnesota
Marcella Windmuller-Campione, Forest Resources
Background
Lodgepole pine dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium americanum) is a parasitic plant native to the western United States and Canada. This type of mistletoe can attack and kill jack pine, making it a threat to Minnesota’s forests should it reach the state. Early detection and eradication efforts are important to preventing an invasion.
Researchers are getting a head start on an A. americanum eradication plan by studying the management toolbox of Minnesota’s similar native dwarf mistletoe variety, A. pusillum. As part of this project, they will continue to examine the success rate of those current methods to eradicate and look ahead to developing new techniques for early sampling and identification of invasive mistletoe varieties.
Research questions
- What are the most effective and efficient techniques for sampling and identifying invasive dwarf mistletoe, A. americanum?
- How effective are eradication practices for Minnesota’s native dwarf mistletoe, A. pusillum?
- What is Minnesota’s plan for detecting and managing invasive dwarf mistletoe as early as possible?
Practical implications
This research will help Minnesota land managers be ready to defend their pines against a new invasive threat as soon as it happens. It will also assess the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of the state’s current dwarf mistletoe management practices for future improvement.
Details
Funding:
$455,606
Collaborators:
Research Team:
Marcella Windmuller-Campione, principal investigator
Robert Blanchette, co-principal investigator
Charles Blinn, co-principal investigator
Christopher Edgar, co-principal investigator
Matthew Russell, co-principal investigator
Stephanie Snyder, co-principal investigator
Brian Anderson, researcher
Sarah Fellows, researcher
Amit Pradhananga, researcher
Ella Gray, Ph.D. candidate
Alex Gorman, M.S. student
News & Publications
- Influence of eastern spruce dwarf mistletoe on stand structure and composition in northern Minnesota (Forest Ecology and Management, 2021)
- Regeneration responses in black ash (Fraxinus nigra) wetlands: implications for forest diversification to address emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) (New Forests, 2020)*
- Assessing the future susceptibility of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) in the Great Lakes Region using forest composition and structural attributes (Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 2018)
* Not funded by MITPPC