June 9^th – Beech Leaf Disease, Tuesday, 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM

Join our scientist on a tour of the forest research plots to see the treatments firsthand and learn about the additional research and restoration projects that are actively in progress.

In Summer 2024, beech leaf disease (BLD) was discovered in American Beech trees on the northern edge of the Pennypack Preserve. In the time since then, symptomatic beech has been found throughout our region. The disease is caused by a microscopic foliar nematode (Litylenchus crenatae mccannii) that enters and feeds on beech buds, limiting a tree’s ability to perform photosynthesis and produce energy. This leads to the tree weakening over time and potentially dying over a period of 7-10 years. Many states expect to lose American Beech from their forests and only individual specimen beech trees are being treated.

In 2025, Bartlett Tree Research Laboratories established research plots on the preserve to experiment with different methods (silvicultural thinning and chemical injections) to determine if forest-level management of BLD can be achieved with an integrated approach using silvicultural techniques and/or chemical injections. Initial bud nematode counts found a promisingly reduced amount in beech within thinned and treatment plots.

Check out our website to learn more about BLD and Bartlett’s research before the tour: pennypacktrust.org/bld

Register here: https://app.etapestry.com/cart/PennypackEcologicalRestorati/default/item.php?ref=612.0.181893551