As disease and pests have taken their toll on trees at Polliwog Park, the city of Manhattan Beach is preparing to take down troubled trees and replace them with hardier varieties.

All told, the city will be taking down 17 diseased trees while introducing 78 new trees from eight diverse species, five of them being native species. The tree removal and replacement project will begin this month.

The trees to be removed include seven pine trees infected with pine pitch canker (seen in photo "A" below). This is a fungus that was first observed in California in Santa Cruz County in 1986. The disease has since spread rapidly and now occurs in 18 coastal counties.

Seven eucalyptus trees will also be removed due to infestations of the longhorned borer beetle. These large beetles, attracted to freshly cut wood, dying limbs, and stressed trees, lay their eggs under bark. When the larvae hatch, they bore into the cambial layer beneath the bark, disrupting the tree's ability to transport water and nutrients. This extensive feeding damage, known as "ring barking," can lead to the death of infested trees.

Manhattan Beach's Public Works department oversees trees and tree issues through its Urban Forestry program. With more than 12,000 trees over nearly four square miles, the Urban Forestry program is responsible for administering proper tree care, planting new trees, removing failed and hazardous trees, conducting reforestation projects in parks, municipal grounds, open spaces, medians, and streets, and maintaining a street tree database with maintenance information about trees throughout the city. The city's "urban forest" is comprised of street trees, park trees, residential trees, native trees, plants, landscaping, and vegetation; as well as privately owned and established trees in front yards, which are within the city's tree protection zone and are protected by Manhattan Beach municipal code.

All told, Polliwog Park is currently home to 422 trees.