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Plant diseases
Fire blight
Erwinia amylovora · Bacterium
Also called fireblight (UK).
Illustration
Blossoms and shoots that wilt and blacken as if scorched, with shoot tips bent into a shepherd's crook. It isn't in Australia: report any suspected case there. Elsewhere, cut out infected wood in dry weather and disinfect your tools.
How to spot it
- Blossoms that wilt, blacken and die at flowering.
- Shoot tips bent over into a shepherd's crook.
- Brown-black leaves that stay hanging on the branch, as if burnt.
- Dark, sunken cankers on branches, with reddish-brown streaks under the bark.
- Milky to amber droplets of ooze in warm, wet weather.
Easily confused with
Blossom wilt
Small buff pustules on the dead blossoms, and dieback rarely more than 20–30 cm.
Frost damage
No reddish streaks in the wood under the bark.
Where it's a problem
- Australia: Not present anywhere in Australia. It's a declared pest in WA and notifiable in NSW: report suspected cases to the Exotic Plant Pest Hotline, 1800 084 881, and don't cut or move plant material.
- New Zealand: Present since about 1919, in restricted areas.
- United Kingdom: Widespread; no longer notifiable in mainland Britain.
- North America: Native and widespread.
What to do
- In Australia, report it first, and don't prune or move anything.
- Elsewhere, choose resistant varieties.
- Prune out infections in dry weather, cutting well into healthy wood (the RHS says about 30 cm on small branches and 60 cm on large ones).
- Disinfect tools between every cut.
- Pick off late second blossoms before they open, and avoid heavy nitrogen feeding and overhead sprinklers.
The RHS says there are no chemical controls for gardeners; commercial orchards use tightly timed preventive sprays.
Follow your local council's guidance for disposing of diseased plant material. Official guides usually advise against putting it in a home compost heap.
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Sources
- RHS: Fireblight
- Plant Health Australia: Fire blight fact sheet
- ACT Government: Fire blight
- WA DPIRD: Fire blight
- Clemson University HGIC: Fire blight of fruit trees
- University of Maryland Extension: Fire blight
Facts checked Sunday 27 September 2026. General guidance only: follow your local council, agency and product label.