Landscape October 2025 | Courtyards Of Southp

October 2025 Landscape Committee Report

Let’s Defeat Plant Diseases and Pests

The nature trails on both sides of the Fayetteville Road entrance to our neighborhood were mowed recently. For those who like to get off the paved paths and sidewalks, these trails provide a great option for strolling through the meadow area and along the tree line on one side of the road and around both ponds on the other side of the road. We invite and encourage you to use these walking trails while the weather is nice.

The shorter days and cooler temperatures of autumn have brought welcome relief from summer’s heat and humidity. As many of you are aware, however, our trees, shrubs and grass have needed more rain in recent weeks. It is very important to water new plantings — especially new trees — throughout the fall. A special thank you to our neighbors in the new section who are watering the street trees you are so lucky to have!

The focus for this month’s Landscaping Committee report is diseases and pests that are damaging trees and shrubs in our community.

We want to make certain everyone is aware that homeowners are responsible for treating diseased plants in their yards after the completion of their one-year warranty period with Epcon, just as they are responsible for removing and replacing dead trees and shrubs on their individual lots after the warranty period. We do not contract with our landscaping management company to handle diseased trees and shrubs on individual lots. This helps us better manage HOA costs associated with our already large landscaping budget.

Additional sources of information about all these tree and shrub problems can easily be found on the Internet.

Comments, questions and suggestions related to landscaping in our community are always welcomed. Committee members are Debbie Bell, Kathleen Cirillo, MaryKay Doane, Leigh Garmhausen, Bob Williams and me.

Here is a brief overview of what to do about diseases and pests that have damaged trees and shrubs in our neighborhood this year.

Rose rosette disease

Rose rosette disease is a condition that causes roses to grow deformed stems, leaves and flowers. Symptoms of the disease include:

Bright red new growth that never turns green
Very thick stems with excessive thorniness
Flower buds that emerge in tiny, tight clusters — the “rosettes” that gave the disease its name; they also are called “witches’ brooms”
Flowers that are deformed
Foliage that is contorted and stunted and may also be yellow

The disease itself is a virus, but it requires a very tiny mite, called an eriophyid mite, to transfer the disease between plants. There is no chemical cure for the virus, and it is important to control the spread of the disease by removing and disposing of the infected roses, including the roots, completely. Many of us have had to dig up our roses that became infected, so we encourage others in the neighborhood who have diseased roses to remove them promptly to minimize further spread of the virus.

Replanting roses in the same location from which you removed diseased roses is not recommended — at least not right away. Any roots remaining in the soil could still contain the mites, so it’s best to allow a few seasons for those to die completely. The good news is the virus does not affect other plants, so any non-rose species of shrubs or flowering plants can be planted in the location immediately.

North Carolina State Extension provides more information in this article.

Bagworms

Bagworms are a serious pest to a variety of ornamental plants and are the caterpillars of a moth. These caterpillars are called “bagworms” because they wrap themselves in a bag constructed of material from their host plant.

New bagworm infestations often go unnoticed until late in the summer, when caterpillars are large and consuming a lot of plant material and branches begin to appear defoliated.

In Courtyards at Southpoint, bagworms have recently caused damage to arborvitaes and have been found on Japanese maples and rose bushes. It is too late in the season to treat bagworms with chemicals. Instead, it is advised to physically remove the bags because females already have laid eggs inside the bags for next year's generation. It is best to use a very

sharp knife or utility razor to cut the silk band that bagworms wrap around and around the twig. If you merely pull the bag to remove it, the silk band may slide along the twig and shear off the needles. If not removed, the silk bands sometimes girdle the twig, which eventually causes it to die and break off at that point.

After removing bagworms from a tree, you must destroy them immediately to prevent re-infestation. You can burn them, seal them in an airtight plastic bag and put it in the trash, or drown them in soapy water.

North Carolina State Extension provides additional information about treating bagworms.

Crape myrtle bark scale

Unfortunately, crape myrtle bark scale has become prevalent in Courtyards at Southpoint. The problem is easy to identify because of the black sooty mold that covers infected trees. The issue begins with the insects, which are very small, resembling grains of rice, that are frequently found attached to the trees’ bark and sometimes leaves. As they feed, the insects produce a sticky waste product that covers the tree and eventually turns the tree black. In addition to being unsightly, the sooty mold can reduce the health and performance of infected trees. To remove the sooty mold and improve the health of trees, homeowners must first control the insects.

According to Extension Master Gardeners of Durham County, soil drenching — placing liquid chemicals in the soil near the roots for uptake into the plant — is the most effective treatment because it allows the insecticide to be absorbed by the roots and move up into the tree to kill the insect.

Members of the Courtyards at Southpoint Garden Club have had success in controlling the scale insects on their crape myrtles with Bioadvanced Tree & Shrub Protect and Feed.

Durham Master Gardeners provide more information about crape myrtle bark scale infestation in this article.

Oakworms

Oakworms, as you would expect, feed primarily on oaks, and they attacked one or two of the oaks planted along the street in the new section of our neighborhood this summer.

The most common "oak tree worm" in North Carolina is the orange-striped oakworm, a native caterpillar that feeds on oak leaves, causing partial or complete defoliation. These caterpillars are black with yellow-orange stripes and have spines on their backs.

While oakworms are not generally harmful to the tree, their droppings can stain patios and driveways. Control for minor infestations is often unnecessary, but for a heavy infestation, you can physically remove the caterpillars from small trees.

This article from North Carolina State Extension provides more information.