Sick toyon tree

I tried this one over on the Garden Foes forum with no luck--it seems to be much more about insects over there, and this is definitely not an insect problem, more like a fungus or something so I'm hoping maybe someone over here can help me.

My toyon tree (Heteromeles arbutifolia) seems to be dying and I'm trying to figure out if it can still be saved or if I should get rid of it. It starts off with some reddish brown blotches on the leaves, then over time the leaves become all brown and dead. The berries look dried up too. I've lived here 3 yrs and cut off a few branches the first year that had this problem, but it's been affecting more and more branches every year. I tried spraying with some Neem oil fungicide last year and again this spring but it didn't seem to do any good. Here's a picture of the beginning stage where the berries are shrivelled but the leaves just have spots on them:

And here's a picture of a branch after the leaves have all turned brown and the berries are shrivelled and black

Hi ecrane3,

Could it possibly be SOD (Sudden Oak Death)? Here's a description: http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_diseases_pests_diseases/article/0,1785,HGTV_3579_3001704,00.html
Your plant kinda looks like what happens to an Arbutus when a branch dies back. Does it look like the top is drying out? Heteromeles arbutifolia is a succeptible species. If you think it might be, talk to the extension office and see if you can get it tested.

Thanks growin! I read the SOD page and some of the symptoms do sound similar so it could be that. But the top of the tree doesn't look like it's dried out at all--the problem started with the lower branches on one side of the tree and the top branches and the lower branches on the other side of the tree are still fine (but it's slowly spreading, so I think it's only a matter of time). The tree also constantly sends up suckers from the base and these appear fine (I usually cut them back, but there are a few that I missed that have been there for ~6 months and show no symptoms yet)

Hi ecrane3,

One of the pages I came across yesterday said that SOD doesn't necessarily kill Heteromeles. I think, to be on the safe side, to have the extension office have a look at it or test it. Another site I came up with said this plant suffers from a few fungal problems.

I had my eye on this plant just the other day while reading, "Rare and Unusual Plants for New Zealand Gardens" and he mentions Heteromeles. He says, "Its appeal to collectors lies in the fact that it is hard to imagine why such a good garden specimen should be so rare in cultivation outside its native California." I just can't import it as it is a succeptible species for SOD. I can only grow it from seed as SOD doesn't transfer in seed supposedly.

I hope you figure out what is wrong with your plant as it would be sad to lose. You might also want some advice from the California Gardening Forum as I bet one of them has grown/is growing this plant and some have seen SOD. Good Luck!

Hi growin,

Thanks so much for your help! I found a webpage that has leaf pictures from a toyon infected with SOD and it looks a lot like mine in the earlier stages before the leaf turns completely brown. I still hope it's not, but I will take it to the extension office and see if they know for sure. I also have two other susceptible plants near the tree (rhododendron and Pieris), so I'm hoping they don't get it too.

Would you be interested in seeds from the half of my tree that still looks healthy? I haven't really done much seed collecting so I have no idea when the right time would be to pull the berries off the tree to get the seeds, and there's a good chance the birds may get them before I do, but I'm happy to give it a try! D-mail me if you're interested