Betel nut tree fungus resurfaces

The fungus Phytophthora meadii, which causes the Betel Nut Bud Rot Disease, has resurfaced and has already killed over 150 betel nut trees.

According to agricultural consultant Isidoro T. Cabrera of the Northern Marianas College Cooperate Research, Extension and Education Service, the disease has already affected trees in an area in Papago and two areas in Capitol Hill.

Cabrera discovered the spread Friday during a survey around the island

“An estimated 100 trees were dying or are already dead in Papago, and over 50 on Capitol Hill,” Cabrera said during an interview yesterday.

Cabrera said the disease is the same that wiped out close to 10,000 betel nut trees at the Fina Sisu and As Lito area in the 1990s.

“There were three plantations that were completely wiped out in the mid-90s because of this particular disease,” he said.

The disease also destroyed thousands of trees on Guam from late 2003 to 2004, raising concerns from growers who depend on the sales generated from the betel nut.

Cabrera said the disease spreads during rainy season, especially if a typhoon is experienced.

“That’s the optimum time for the disease to start spreading,” he said. “It takes high humidity, wind, and heavy rain for this disease to actually rejuvenate.”

He said the disease was dormant for years because the island was not hit by a typhoon, but may have resurfaced because of the wet weather experienced last year, with Typhoon Tingting and Supertyphoon Chaba striking the island.

The fungus produces microscopic spores that are easily blown around and dispersed in the wind and rain. It is carried to other neighboring trees and infects them.

Once the spores are blown and has the right humidity and temperature, that’s how the other trees are infected. It continues to spread to neighboring areas.

After a month-long incubation stage on the newly infected tree, symptoms of the disease will then appear and the tree will die in about another month.

Symptoms of the fungal infection include lesions on the leaves, dead young leaves or deterioration of the green part of the plant at the base of the leaves.

Cabrera said once infected, a tree has no chance of survival. He suggested that the next best thing to do is to cut the tree and burn to prevent the disease from spreading.

Cabrera said betel nut tree owners need not panic because of the findings, citing that the island is currently in its dry season and that there are control measures that can prevent the spread of the disease, referring to a chemical fungicide known as Kocide 4.5LF.

He said, however, that the fungicide is only registered for control measure on Guam.

“In order for the CNMI to use the chemical, we need to apply for a permit from [Division of Environmental Quality],” he said. ‘It’s not registered to spray betel nut in the CNMI. We need the green light from DEQ if we intend to do chemical control by using this particular fungicide.”

The chemical, Cabrera said, is used only to prevent healthy trees from becoming infected.

Cabrera said that because it is in the dry season, the fungus transferred to another tree would eventually die because of lack of moisture needed for it to grow.

Cabrera said experts have yet to pinpoint the source of the disease, explaining that in the 90s, betel nut was imported from various locations, including Guam, Thailand, Taiwan, Palau, and Yap.

He said, though, that trees on Taiwan were also affected by the disease in the early 90s, before the disease was discovered on Saipan.

Today, CNMI imports betel nut from Yap and Ponhpei. Imported nuts from the two Micronesia states is expected to increase in the coming months.

“There’s no production of soft green betel nut in March to July, and that would cause an increase in importation from Yap and Pohnpei,” Cabrera said.

Current quarantine regulations restrict importation of betel nut from Guam.

Meanwhile, Cabrera said infected betel nut would not harm humans who chew them.

“It only affects the living betel nut trees and plants, and also doesn’t affect other family trees such as coconut,” Cabrera said.