The state Department of Agriculture reports that cases of the Sudden Oak Death disease have been found in Ohio.

The plant pathogen, also known as phytophthora ramorum, was found on rhododendron and lilac plants shipped to Walmart and Rural King stores in Ohio.

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Officials estimate that 1,600 infected plants were shipped to stores throughout the state. Shipments also went to at least 17 other states.

The disease can kill oak, other tree species and woody ornamentals like rhododendron, Viburnum and Pieris.

Signs of the disease can include leaf spots, shoot dieback and cankers (dead wood material) on the tree's trunk, which can lead eventually to the death of the tree or plant. Sudden Oak Death can be difficult to diagnose because symptoms are similar to infections from fungi or insects and other conditions. The disease has devastated oak trees in California and Oregon and can be spread by splashing rainwater on the spores of a diseased plant.

The pathogen does not readily produce spores or spread naturally under dry conditions and is not common in urban or suburban areas where native vegetation has largely been removed.

Anyone who purchased rhododendron or lilac plants from Walmart or Rural King between March and May should immediately dispose of the plants in a way to prevent further spread of the disease, officials with the state agriculture department's Division of Plant Health said. Infected plants can be destroyed by burning, deep burial or double-bagging the plant — including the root ball — in heavy duty trash bags for disposal. To prevent further spreading, do not compost.

Also to prevent spreading the disease, garden tools used on infected plants must also be sanitized with bleach or 91% or higher alcohol before they are used again.

To report infected plants, contact the Ohio Department of Agriculture's Division of Plant Health by email at plantpest@agri.ohio.gov or call 614-728-6400.

bburger@dispatch.com

@ByBethBurger