Said to fall out of the sky, and have a wide host range. One expert on phythophthora told me it's too late to contain this one. In the west coast trade there has been a focus on preventing dispersal of infested camellias. Lots of those around already. It seems to me buying a California bay and planting it on your place would only matter if it arrived infested and then the pathogen spread from there.

Same as with planting an infested camellia.

Or an infested rhododendron.

Or...

Unless you buy the shrubby form you will end up with a large somewhat dumpy tree in time (should it be successful there). So there might be other reasons to avoid it besides SOD susceptibility.

Have you been out to Cistus? If you have a hankering for broad-leaved evergreen trees, there are multiple other options.

Here is a link that might be useful: Timber Press: Sean Hogan

In the west coast trade there has been a focus on preventing dispersal of infested camellias. Lots of camellias around already.

I have 4 myrtles and several camellias next to several oaks. Will be transplanting 2 of the myrtles even closer to oaks. All these are surrounded by rhodies. I'd go crazy if I let myself think about the possibilities.

Yes, CA bay laurel is one of the primary propagators of the pathogen that causes sudden oak death. Yes, that pathogen, Phytophthora ramorum, makes regular appearances in the nursery trade in both OR and WA. And it has shown up in gardens here and there. It is established in forests and woodlands in California, and in extreme southwestern Oregon. I would have to agree that it's already out there, and too late to contain it. As to its falling from the sky - ??? no. In infested forests in CA it is dispersed in wind-blown rain, which picks up the spores from treetop foliage, particularly CA bay laurels and tanoaks. In the nursery trade it is carried on infested leaves and soil, and does not fall from the sky. To my knowledge, it has not yet been found on Umbellularia in Oregon, where you all call it Oregon myrtle.

It is not at all widespread. You already have any number of other species of Phytophthora in your garden. It does not kill most of its hosts, or even cause anything much beyond leaf spots. CA bay laurels can have rampant infections without showing much in the way of symptoms, and they do not die from it. It does not affect Garry oak, or apparently any of the white oaks. It kills tanoaks, and CA coast live oaks, and causes bark cankers on a few other CA native oaks.

The main way it gets into people's gardens is when they buy a plant that already has it, usually rhododendrons or camellias, both of which can be asymptomatic. If you were a serious rhododendron collector, I'd avoid Umbellularia or any of the other prime foliar hosts, like tanoak or coast redwood. Otherwise I wouldn't worry about it.

>As to its falling from the sky - ??? no. In infested forests in CA it is dispersed in wind-blown rainThe rain where I've been always fell out of the sky.

"P. ramorum produces both resting spores (chlamydospores) and zoospores, which have flagella enabling swimming. P. ramorum is spread by air;[3] one of the major mechanisms of dispersal is rainwater splashing spores onto other susceptible plants, and into watercourses to be carried for greater distances.[3]"

Here is a link that might be useful: Wikipedia / Sudden Oak Death

I got some California Bay Laurel seeds from a friend and was going to plant them. But I see it is a host for this Oak Death thing. Not going to plant the seeds. We love our Oak trees in NC. Another reason to do research when handling seeds and plants from another region.

Here is a link that might be useful: Sudden Oak Death found in NC

Again a matter of whether or not the material obtained was infested when received. If your seeds are clean there is no reason to think you will then get SOD because of having planted them and grown the trees on.