The Emerald Ash Tree

Emerald Ash Borers has killed millions of ash tree and put billions more at risk. Emerald Ash Borers originated in Asia and eastern Russia was first discovered in Canada in 2002. It is now widespread in Quebec and Ontario areas. Emerald Ash Borers can be spread to various parts of Canada and USA through infested firewood trading. Therefore the government of Canada has decided to restrict infested areas. Emerald Ash Borer arrived to Canada through trading forestry products. If we had been more careful, Emerald Ash Borers would have never entered Canada. Therefore our interaction in cutting down trees to trade and trading with others has an important effect on the welfare of our forests. The interaction of receiving wood from outside our country

The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis, is a beetle that was first discovered in 2002 in the US near the Detroit area and southeastern portions of Michigan. This beetle is believed to have originated in Asia. The theory is that they arrived in the states in packing material made of wood on cargo ships traveling on the St. Lawrence River, which then leads into the Great Lakes. Since 2002, this beetle has made its way into parts of Canada and now in at least eighteen states in the US (Emerald, n.d.). They are causing major destruction of Ash trees in all of these areas, and Vermont is starting to take precautions to be prepared if and when these beetles show up in The Green Mountain

Eliminating the bronze birch borer from your trees and restoring them to their natural health requires multiple treatment methods. First of all, you need to ensure the health of your tree by watering them regularly: one slow watering every few weeks should be enough. Next, you need to spread at least three-inches of wood chips around the base of the tree to hold in moisture. Most importantly: do not fertilize your trees when they are infested with the bronze birch borer: the extra growths can actually attract more birch borers to your

Pine trees have two subgenus, one is the Strobus and the other one is the Pinus. (Earle, Christopher J. "Pinus (pine) Description - The Gymnosperm Database) There are about 114 species of Aspen out there. (Earle, Christopher J. "Pinus (pine) Description - The Gymnosperm Database) The main four types of Pine trees are scotch pine, ponderosa pine, bristlecone pine and black pine. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Pine trees are usually taller than 250 feet and have a lot of spiky leaves. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") These leaves have a long vine then small spiky thin pieces of leaves branch out of the vines. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Pine trees barks are a mixture of green and brown and are quite smooth besides the little bumps. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Pine trees also have small pine cones which grow on the tree. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") They are usually brown and face downwards with spikes facing downwards. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Pine trees are usually very popular in christmas, because they are easy to plant and not as hard to nurture as other plants. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") For example the Aspen trees which are very hard to keep alive. Most Pine trees can last from 100 years all the way up to 1000 years, if they are not chopped down for paper by that time that is. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Even though these trees last for quite a long time they still have diseases. Some examples are, the canker disease, needle cast, white pine blister rust, root rot and beetle infestation. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Most of these disease makes the trees crack in half. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") To prevent this sort of thing, you should not over fertilize the pine tree and don't constantly water the plant. (Lovetoknow Corp. "Pine Trees.") Aspen trees and Pine trees both grow small cones, which grow on the tree after it matures or while it

The Asian and Citrus Longhorned Beetles was accidentally brought to the US from China through solid wood shipments. The movement of lumber and firewood around the continent is also responsible for the rapid spread of the invasive longhorned beetles. These beetles favorite prey are maples, birches, buckeye, elm and willow trees. Longhorned beetles mainly fed on citrus trees in China, but these trees in the US are similar enough to serve as alternative food.

The Dendroctonus ponderosae (Mountain Pine Beetle) is estimated to have killed 46 million acres of trees from 2000 to 2012 - an area nearly the size of the state of Colorado, as stated in an article released by the Union of Concerned Scientists. In response to this epidemic, the U.S. Forest Service estimates that “as many as 100,000 beetle-killed trees fall to the ground every day in Southern Wyoming and Northern Colorado alone”. The results of the early 2000’s outbreak clearly reflect the devastation, but the reasons behind the infestation are not as defined. It 's commonly believed that the cause of the Mountain Pine Beetle outbreak was warmer temperatures that decreased winter larvae

The mountain pine beetle (MPB; Dendroctonus ponderosae) is a native insect of North America that induces pine tree mortality from bark boring infestation. On average, the MPB lives for one year with four stages of development (egg, larva, pupa and adult). The MPB remains burrowed within a host pine tree throughout all four stages of its life except in the late fall when the mature beetles leave a brood tree in search of a new reproduction site. When a MPB finds an optimal tree for infestation, pheromones are released which attract a swarm of adult beetles. After successfully burrowing into the Pine bark, egg galleries are created for the 75 eggs each female will lay, and these eggs develop into larvae that feed on the host tree's phloem.

Forests are carbon sinks, they absorb carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and store it in plant biomass and soils belowground. When the trees die, they stop absorbing and storing carbon dioxide, and as they decompose, they release some of the stored carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere (Suzuki & Moola, 2008). The mountain pine beetle (Aendroctonus ponderosae) is a primary agent of forest disturbance, a higher number of outbreaks occur due to favorable forest age and climate patterns (Progar et al., 2014). The mountain pine beetle (MPB) starts its attack when the female finds a pine tree (usually lodgepole) that is at least 80 years old. Upon finding the tree the female bores into it, while releasing a pheromone that attracts the male beetles. When the males arrive they, also release more pheromones to attract more females. The tree tries to defend its self by secreting a toxic resin. But the beetles carry spores of a blue-stain fungus in their mouths which they release as they bore into the tree, the fungus prevents the tree from transporting nutrients and water. The beetles lay eggs under the tree’s bark, and when the larvae hatch, they feed on the blue fungus until they are mature enough to leave the now dead tree (Aukema et al., 2006).

The first is to chemically treat the trees with an insecticide. Secondly to release small beetles that eat the wooly adelgid. Both methods are extremely expensive both in time and money. The chemicals used in treating the trees target the wooly adelgids specifically. The University of North Georgia's predator beetle lab works to raise beetles that eat the Wooly adelgid.

The trees do a lot of evapotranspiration, so if the borer destroyed them, the watershed levels would increase. This increase would negatively affect plant diversity because invasive species and grasses would start to become present. In urban areas, there is usually more diversity, so the absence of black ash would not affect the habitat that significantly. Also, if a tree dies in an urban environment, another one can be planted. On the other hand, in a forested wetland, if black ash trees start dying they would be very hard to replace and replenish. Slesak et al., 2014 state that if evapotranspiration is affected, a shift in the vegetation would occur and favor herbaceous vegetation rather than trees. There are various methods used to manage the spread of EAB to black ash forested wetlands. Mercader et al., 2011 bring up one method, which consists of removing ash trees to reduce available host phloem resource. Basically, foresters cut down trees that can host EAB, attempting to eliminate their presence. A different method, brought up by BenDor et al., 2006, consists of implementing firewood

Based on my observations and data collected so far, my tree and spot has changed in many different ways from September to December. Some changes in my spot are the color, texture, and number of leaves. Also, the texture of the bark on my tree, and ground surrounding my tree has changed. My tree is an Eastern Redbud (Cercis Canadensis). In the beginning of fall, my tree had mostly all of its leaves, but my tree was bare by January 4th. The texture of the leaves on my tree went from very soft and smooth in early fall, to a leathery rough texture by late December. The leaves on my tree were pure green when we started Adopt-A-Spot, and most leaves only started turning brown in late October, early December. The texture of the bark on my tree, and

Pinus taeda was only a minor component (2.2 million hectares) of hardwood dominated Piedmont forest before European settlement in the U.S. (before the 1800’s). These forests were converted into agricultural lands (especially cotton farming) after European settlement. However, the introduction of the boll weevil (Anthonomus grandis grandis Boheman) impacted growing cotton industry and piedmont and coastal plains in the south remained unused. Abandoned land with eroded soil created a favorable condition for the spread of the light-seeded P. taeda trees resulting in the widespread growth of pure P. taeda stand (Schultz, 1997). Fire control programs conducted in the early 1900s further favored those stands. Furthermore, P. taeda stands expanded

Another way of controlling these plants would be to use chemicals and herbicides on the trees, in order to eliminate them. Using this tactic, a person would kill the plant by “applying a 2% solution of glyphosate or triclopyr plus a 0.25% non-ionic surfactant to thoroughly wet all leaves” (Mimosa Tree). These routes would prevent the plant from completely taking over an area before it was killed. It would also keep the tree from sucking nutrients from the soil that other plants need to survive.

The odds are high that the ants and tree will live in harmony and the tree will be fine. If the tree is touching your home, trim it back so that it is no longer creating a bridge from the tree to your house. Remove any limbs that are clearly dead or damage to prevent an accident. If you are concerned for the health of the tree, there are steps you can take to control the ants. If the tree contains aphids as well as ants, getting rid of the aphids will deter the ants. Aphids can be hosed off the tree with a jet of water from the garden hose. You can also spray the tree with an insecticidal soap for safe pest control with no residual effects. To treat the ants directly, apply a systemic tree and shrub pesticide. This type of pesticide is sprayed around the tree and taken up by its roots to provide insect protection for up to a year. A systemic pesticide is best for the tree, since it doesn't require that you drill holes into

Before you’re able to address the situation of a dying tree, you need to know how to recognize one. One notable sign is when the tree seems off-kilter, leaning severely to one side. Other times, you may notice that the tree looks diseased, with soft rotting wood or fungal growths. If