Maier Forest and Tree News

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Emerald Ash Borer Team confirmed today that the emerald ash borer (EAB), an invasive pest that kills ash trees, has been found in Iowa along the Mississippi River two miles south of the Minnesota border in Allamakee County. The land is owned and managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

This is the first confirmed EAB infestation in Iowa. Four EAB larvae were found in one ash tree by members of Iowa’s EAB team during a survey of the area following the recent announcement that the beetle had been found just across the Minnesota border. An infestation in nearby Victory, Wis., was discovered in 2009.

A quarantine prohibiting the movement of firewood, ash nursery stock, ash timber or any other article that could further spread EAB is pending from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. A federal quarantine would follow the state quarantine.

An Iowa State University Extension news article released today provides EAB management recommendations for homeowners.

This detection of EAB in Iowa was the result of collaborative effort that has been looking for this pest since 2003. Detection efforts have included visual surveys, sentinel trees, trap surveys, nursery stock inspections, sawmill/wood processing site visits and hundreds of educational programs.

This year, EAB team members are in the process of placing 1,800 purple traps at high-risk areas in the state, including in a 1.5-mile grid along the Mississippi River. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources also has 412 trap trees in the state this year, 12 of which are in Allamakee County.

The emerald ash borer is native to eastern Asia and was detected in the United States near Detroit, Mich., in 2002. EAB kills all ash (Fraxinus) species by larval burrowing under the bark and eating the actively growing layers.

The metallic-green adult beetles are a 1/2-inch long and are active from late May to early August in Iowa. Signs of EAB infestation include 1/8-inch D-shaped exit holes in ash tree bark and serpentine tunnels packed with sawdust under the bark. Tree symptoms of an infestation include crown thinning and dieback when first noticed, epicormic sprouting as insect damage progresses, and woodpecker feeding.

EAB has killed ash trees of various sizes in neighborhoods and woodlands throughout the Midwest. Ash is one of the most abundant native tree species in North America, and has been heavily planted as a landscape tree in yards and other urban areas. According to recent sources, Iowa has an estimated 58 million rural ash trees and approximately 30 million more ash trees in urban areas.

The Iowa Emerald Ash Borer Team includes officials from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa State University Extension, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, USDA Animal Plant Health Inspection Service and the USDA Forest Service.

The movement of firewood throughout Iowa and to other states poses the greatest threat to quickly spread EAB even further. Areas currently infested are under federal and state quarantines, but unknowing campers or others who transport firewood can spark an outbreak. As a result, officials are asking Iowans to not move firewood and instead buy wood where they are staying and burn it completely.

To learn more about EAB, please visit the following websites:
• www.IowaTreePests.com
• www.iowadnr.gov/forestry/eab/index.html
• www.extension.iastate.edu/PME/EmeraldAshBorer.html

Ash Borer Infestation Discovered In Houston County

HOUSTON COUNTY

The MDA discovered the infestation in the Upper Mississippi River fish and Wildlife Area, which is about one mile from an infestation in Victory, Wis. that was found in April 2009.

An emerald ash borer infestation was confirmed in three trees in rural Houston County along the Mississippi River, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture announced Thursday.

The MDA discovered the infestation in the Upper Mississippi River fish and Wildlife Area, which is about one mile from an infestation in Victory, Wis. that was found in April 2009.

State officials expected to find the pest in the country.

“When the infestation was reported last spring on the Wisconsin side of the river, we knew there was a good chance EAB had made it across the river to Houston County,” said MDA Plant Protection Director Geir Friisoe. “That’s why we issued a quarantine for Houston County last year even before it was found in the county. This is an expected development, but it is also a reminder that emerald ash borer is a threat to Greater Minnesota and not just the Twin Cities area.”

A quarantine is in place in Houston County, which prohibits moving from the county any items that may be infested with emerald ash borer.

Emerald ash borer has already killed more than 40 million ash trees nationwide and in Canada. The beetle’s larvae tunnels into the wood of ash trees and feeds on the inner bark.

Emerald Ash Borer was confirmed in the Tower Hill/Prospect Park part of Minneapolis today 2/25/2010, by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.

Snow is both a friend and a foe to trees and shrubs.  It causes damage as we know, but it also protects plants and their roots from temperature extremes that would otherwise kill them. 

Snow damages a plant by bending, breaking, splitting, and falling or uprooting.  In Minnesota, conifers are typically the only trees to have leaves in the winter.  Typically speaking these trees are resistent to snow damage with the exception of white pines and arborvitae.  Deciduous trees without leaves are not effected.   However in rare cases we get an early snow while the deciduous trees still have leaves.  This causes widespread damage of bending, breaking and splitting.

(This information was taken from TCIA press release called ‘Snow and Woody Plants’

The CTSP program is the only safety credentialing program in the industry.  It is administered by the Tree Care Industry Association (TCIA).  At Maier Forest and Tree, we have 2 CTSPs.  Along with being Certified Arborists, Mark Cummins and Dave Weinhold have been CTSPs since November 2008. 

http://www.treecareindustry.org/Public/ctsp_about.htm

Getting ready for spring means planning your yard work.  If you contract out yard services, don’t let your lawn guys do your trees.  Every year I hear of so many companies spraying for insects or diseases that can’t even be controlled at the time they are spraying.  A lack of knowledge creates a vacuum for money.  However if you use a company that has thorough knowledge of the entire plant, from the roots up, you will find that your dollars actually accomplish your goals of keeping your plants healthy and beautiful year after year.

This is the time of year that people are receiving renewal contracts from their lawn companies.  Those services that address tree and shrub health should be looked at carefully.  If they are recommending fertilization for trees and shrubs more than once per year, they are using products that could be harmful to the plants.  If they are recommending spraying trees for a fungus or an insect, you should get a second opinion from a certified arborist.  Often these are sprayed at the wrong times to control the pest, or the pest is not even a threat to the health of the tree.  This is money wasted.

Maier Forest and Tree offers free evaluations for your tree and shrub health needs.  Our plant health care program makes a real difference in the short and long term health and beauty of your plants.

Winter is a great time to do tree work.  Our certified arborists work year-round providing quality services.  Winter pricing can help make doing work at this time more appealing.

It has been over 6 months since the emerald ash borer (EAB) was found in MN.  The attached link is an October article from WCCO in the cities.

http://wcco.com/local/emerald.ash.borer.2.1222214.html

The MN Dept. of Ag (MDA) is the agency in Minnesota responsible for getting information out on EAB and making regulations to control its spread.  The webpage that would be most helpful to reference is  http://www.mda.state.mn.us/plants/pestmanagement/eab.htm.  The MDA trains “first responders” to recognize the signs and symptoms of EAB and to accurately identify the borer.  Nate Runke, Plant Health Specialist at Maier Forest and Tree, is a MDA first responder.  If you live in the Rochester, MN area and you suspect EAB in your ash tree, please call our office (507-286-8733) and we will help you.