Forest health
Insect & disease (I&D) services
The Forestry Commission’s Insect & Disease staff monitors, reports and coordinates suppression of endemic pests affecting forest trees in South Carolina. I&D also works closely with Christmas tree growers, nurseries growing forest tree seedlings, seed orchards that produce tree seed and municipalities with tree pest problems.
I&D works closely with the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) as well as other state agencies such as Clemson Extension and the Division of Plant Industries.
The current forest pest detection and reporting system involves agency foresters reporting forest pests that are causing abnormal losses, that require control action or that may present new problems. Aerial surveys are made periodically for specific pests, such as southern pine beetle, to determine occurrence and need for suppressive action.
Free inspection and diagnosis
The Insect and Disease laboratory offers free diagnosis of insects and disease affecting forest resources in the state. In addition to examining forest insect/disease pests or tissue samples for South Carolina landowners, SCFC forest health specialists help identify pests and prescribe appropriate control measures for landowners at no charge. Samples for diagnosis are submitted by South Carolina Forestry Commission personnel and various private individuals.
For more information about the I&D lab, how to submit samples for identification or diagnosis, or how to request other I&D assistance, please contact SCFC Forest Health Coordinator David Jenkins at djenkins@scfc.gov or (803) 667-1002.
Forest insect/disease resources
- Forest Health manual (36-page pdf)
- Invasive Species of South Carolina (168-page pdf)
- Asian Longhorned Beetle Found in South Carolina
- Emerald Ash Borer Detected in South Carolina
- How to recognize and report emerald ash borer damage
- Don’t move firewood!!!
Southern Pine Beetle (SPB) resources
- Southern Pine Beetle facts
- Southern pine beetle prevention and restoration cost-share program (pdf)
- SPB program eligible for income exclusion (pdf)
- SPB cost-share rates (pdf)
- Practice Guidelines of the SPB Cost Share Program
- SC Potential Pulpwood Demand Based on Haul Distance in Relation to Southern Pine Beetle (SPB) Risk
- FINANCIAL ANALYSIS OF PRECOMMERCIAL THINNING, LOW-DENSITY PLANTING, AND COST SHARE PAYMENTS
- SPB program’s guide to herbicide and seedling survival and controlling natural pine regeneration (pdf)
SPB surveys
- 2023 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)
- 2022 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)
- 2021 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)
- 2020 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (not done due to COVID-19 restrictions)
- 2019 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)
- 2018 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)
- 2017 SPB Pheromone Trapping Survey (pdf)