Bug of the Week May 18, 2009

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Ash is one of the most common native trees bordering the rivers in the lowland and piedmont areas of our region where it provides shade and nutrients to our small streams and woodlands. Ash is also an important street tree. Almost 300,000 ash trees grow in and around Baltimore. Their value is estimated to exceed $200 million. The Green Menace, Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) was first detected near Detroit, Michigan in 2002, and has now spread to Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and parts of Canada. A native of Asia, EAB likely arrived in this country in packing material. As far as we know, EAB attacks all of our native species of ash and also those commonly used for ornamental purposes in landscapes. To date, it has killed more than 40 million ash trees and threatens several billion nationwide. In 2003 the first EAB tremor was felt in our region when the borer was detected in a nursery in Prince George’s County. This detection confirmed the suspicions and fears of many, namely, that the EAB could be transported and relocated with infested nursery stock. Ash trees infested with EAB were shipped in April, 2003 to a nursery in the Maryland suburbs near Washington, DC. During the spring and summer beetles moved from Michigan-grown trees to ones grown in the nursery. Some of these trees were shipped and installed in several locations in the greater Washington, DC area. Officials from the Maryland Department of Agriculture in cooperation with the USDA conducted search and destroy missions. In 2003, more than 1000 ash trees were destroyed in an attempt to eradicate this pest. State officials were optimistic about the results of the eradication program until August 21, 2006 when larvae of EAB were detected in ash trees in and near the original eradication area. What this meant was that beetles somehow escaped the first eradication attempt and established an infestation in native ash trees nearby. Sounds a bit like Jurassic Park, doesn’t it? Beetles were apparently on the loose for about four growing seasons before the beast was rediscovered in 2006. On August 22, 2006 the Maryland Department of Agriculture issued a revised Quarantine Order that prohibited anyone from moving ash trees, products, or any hardwood firewood into or out of Prince George’s County until further notice. In 2008, this rascal jumped the southern boarder of Prince George’s County and was discovered in northern Charles County. To track the spread on this wily pest, Maryland Department of Agriculture in Cooperation with USDA has established a statewide trapping program that relies on a triangular sticky trap hung in trees. This trap is tinted the color of the affable purple dinosaur Barney and has been affectionately dubbed the “Barney” trap. For reasons known only to Mother Nature, EAB is attracted to the color purple and if beetles are in an area, they will be attracted to these traps, alight and become ensnared in sticky goo where they can be observed and recorded by Department of Agriculture workers. Approximately 4,000 Barney traps will established throughout Maryland and checked from May until August which the season of flight for adult EAB.

To learn more about what you can do to help with the Maryland’s EAB problem and its solution, please visit the Department of Agriculture’s web site at: http://www.mda.state.md.us/plants-pests/eab/

I have received phone calls from concerned citizens wanting to know if their ash trees are infested with EAB. Like a crime scene investigator you can use clues called symptoms and signs to determine if EAB is attacking your ash tree. If you click on the following link, it will take you to a web site that has my step by step guide to identifying pests attacking your ash. The page is called CSI for EAB. http://www.dnr.state.md.us/forests/forester/eab.asp

If your plant identification skills are a little rusty or if you suspect that one of your ash trees is infested by EAB, please visit the Home and Garden Information Center’s EAB web page. It contains valuable links including one that will help you identify the ash trees in you landscape. Information on how to report a suspected EAB infestation is also available at this site. http://www.hgic.umd.edu/content/emeraldAshBorer.cfm

Bug of the Week thanks Dick Bean for providing the EAB and inspiration for this episode. For more information on EAB, please visit the following web sites.