Dead Bud
Abiotic or frost injury
33 host plants
Last updated
Dead bud causes buds to fail and drop without opening on host plants. You see terminal and lateral buds dying prematurely. The condition may result from disease, injury, or environmental stress. Prune out dead buds and provide good cultural care.
Manage dead bud by breaking the disease cycle at the points you can control: remove infected tissue and debris, reduce moisture on susceptible foliage, and maintain plant health through proper watering and fertilization. Healthy, well-sited plants resist infection more effectively than stressed ones, so addressing underlying site conditions often solves the problem better than repeated chemical applications.
Quick Reference
Management
This begins in February prior to leafing out.
Cultural Controls
- Avoid use of susceptible varieties such as 'Bing', 'Lambert', 'Royal Ann', and 'Van'.
- Plant less susceptible types such as 'Black Republican' or 'Mazzard'.
- Prune out and destroy infected tissues during dry weather.
- Do this in the summer, when it is easiest to distinguish killed spurs.
- Disinfect pruning tools between cuts.
- Cold damage may increase severity of this disease.