Forest Nursery Pests (review)

Despite its name, this full-color handbook will be useful to anyone growing native plants in either bareroot or container nurseries. The index lists almost 150 genera and (or) species, including some commercially important nonnative trees. The technical coordinators for revising the original 1989 version did a nice job of expediting the revision and encouraging the 35+ authors to update the content. The 2012 version retains the same look and feel of the 1989 effort, right down to a cover featuring bareroot southern pine seedlings. As before, the text begins with 6 introductory chapters (Diagnosis of Pest Problems, Integrated Nursery Pest Management, Evaluating Damage to Nursery Crops, Soil-Pest Relationships, Mycorrhizae in Forest Tree Nurseries, and Pesticide Regulations). These chapters transcend being useful only to growers of forest trees. Following the introduction are 52 descriptions of common diseases and insects of conifers and hardwoods, written by USDA Forest Service, state, university, and private-sector experts. Each description follows the general pattern of noting whether the description is new or an update from 1989, and then providing information on the host(s), distribution of the problem, damage, diagnostics, biology of the pest, control measures (prevention, cultural, chemical), and selected references. Each description also includes at least one, and often 3 or 4, high-quality photographs. Similar to its 1989 predecessor, the revised book also includes 4 chapters of miscellaneous problems, including Animal Damage, Environmental and Mechanical Damage, Pesticide Injury, and Salinity Damage. A directory of the authors and coordinators, an index of the pests and host plants, and a glossary round out the 202-page book.

Obtaining a hard copy might be challenging as only 1000 copies were printed; contact the National Forest Service Library (240 West Prospect Road, Fort Collins, Colorado 80526; rschneider@fs.fed.us; 970.498.1392) or any member of the USDA's Forest Service Reforestation, Nurseries, and Genetics Resources (RNGR) Team (see their website at http://rngr.net for names and contact info) for a copy as long as they last. Fortunately, the book in PDF format is easily accessible on, and downloadable from the RNGR site (http://rngr.net).