Identifying potential pest problems should be a part of any good forest management program designed to prevent or minimize economic losses due to pests. One of the major tasks for forest managers is to gather all the information that will help them distinguish between symptoms caused by diseases, insects, and abiotic factors. Once they positively identify a pest problem, forest managers must determine what kind of losses might be expected and what control alternatives are available to prevent or minimize losses.

Because red pine is one of our most valuable species, forest managers must consider potential pest problems in their forest management planning in order to prevent economic losses. Proper planning at the beginning of a red pine planting project will result in a productive, healthy stand (fig. 34).

Figure 34

Palmer and Jones (1983) have developed useful pest management guidelines. Here are some general guidelines to help forest managers prevent or reduce pest problems in red pine:

1. Plant on proper sites to maintain tree vigor. Highest productivity occurs on sandy to loamy soils with good moisture and drainage. Good site preparation before planting and periodic silvicultural treatments after planting are often required to maintain healthy trees.

2. Before seeding or planting, check to see what diseases or insects will or might cause a problem for the trees in the area and develop an integrated pest management action plan to deal quickly with impor-tant pest problems that develop. If serious red pine pests are present in or near the planting area and controls are not economically feasible or available, do not plant red pine, especially on poor sites. Another species may be preferable.

3. Survey plantations annually to detect pest problems early. Surveys should be included in the annual program of work, and the procedures should be well developed before surveys are initiated.

4. Report pest problems immediately to your forest pest control personnel for evaluation. Correct pest identification is essential for control. Determine and use available controls for problems serious enough to cause economic losses.

5. 5. Maintain a well-balanced diversity of species on land management units to temper disease or insect outbreaks. Large continuous stands of red pine of the same age are susceptible to severe pest outbreaks, so blocks of red pine should be of varying age classes and broken up with alternate species, preferably not pine. Plantation design is critical for managers committed to the integrated management approach. Having representatives from critical disciplines (i.e. game managers, plant pathologists, entomologists, landscape designers) review a design before planting can help in the overall management and protection of the land resource. This will also enhance the aesthetics of an area (Sloan 1983).

To successfully prevent or control pests of red pine, forest managers must be familiar with those pests and their economic importance, distribution, biology, and controls. Injury caused by insects, diseases, and abiotic factors is often difficult to diagnose. Therefore, accurate and timely identification is essential so that economical and effective integrated pest management strategies can be implemented to protect our valuable red pine resource.