Emerald Ash Borer- FREE webinar!!

2019 All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar on Emerald Ash Borer

When: Friday, March 1 1:00 pm Central time

To Join: https://auburn.zoom.us/j/615766171. 

The Emerald Ash Borer  is responsible for millions of dead ash trees in North America causing homeowners, cities, and nurseries many millions of dollars and heartache. Come learn where this exotic pest came from, its life cycle, and management plans being implemented.   This webinar is presented by Lynne Womack, Georgia Forestry Commission. 

Note: on March 1,  the link to the live webinar opens about 15 minutes before the webinar. If you try to log in earlier, you will get an error message. 

For more webinars in this series, see 2019 All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar Series:  https://articles.extension.org/pages/74786/2019-all-bugs-good-and-bad-webinar-series.  The webinars are brought to you by the following: eXtension Communities of Practice: Ant Pests, and Urban IPM; and by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Clemson Cooperative Extension and University of Georgia Extension.

Amazing beetle tattoo

So those of you who really know me, are aware that I have beetle tattoos all over my back.  Well, I have been outdone.  This tattoo is amazing and to be honest, makes me a bit jealous.....

Emerald Ash Borer has been found in Texas

In late April 2016, four emerald ash beetle adults were located in a trap by the Texas A&M Forest Service in Harrison County (near the Louisiana & Arkansas borders).  Currently, there are no confirmed trees infested with emerald ask borer.

Emerald ash borer, often shortened to EAB, are invasive beetles that attack stressed and healthy ash trees.  These beetles are native to Asia and were discovered for the first time in the U.S. in Michigan back in 2002.  The beetle has now spread to 26 states and killed millions of ash trees.  The beetles are aggressive and can kill an infested ash tree within 2-3 years.

According to the Texas A&M Forest Service, there are 16 species of ash in the U.S. and 7 of those can be found in Texas.  

A statewide plan involves monitoring of beetle movement; educational programming; providing technical assistance in prevention, preparation and recovery; and working with regulatory agencies in regards to quarantines.  The Texas A&M Forest Service is also working to slow the movement of the beetle.

“Proper planning can reduce the impact of EAB in our communities,” said Texas A&M Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program Coordinator Paul Johnson. “Removal of poor quality ash, planting trees that aren’t susceptible to EAB, and protecting high value ash by treating them will help us weather this attack. Work with a forester or an ISA-certified arborist to help you assess your EAB risk and care for your trees.”

For everything you needed to know about emerald ash borers in Texas, see the Texas A&M Forest Service's site here (really, you should read this!!): https://tfsweb.tamu.edu/eab/

For general emerald ash borer information see this site: http://www.emeraldashborer.info/

Beetle or true bug?

Several people have been asking me about "beetle" problems they are having on their plants.  When I finally see the insect it's not a beetle, but a true bug. So, how do you tell the difference between the two groups?

Beetles: Beetles have hardened forewings (the front wings), so they may look as if they have a straight line down their back. Beetles also have chewing mouthparts with mandibles.


True bugs: True bugs have their forewings hardened at the base and membranous at the end. This creates a triangular shape on their back. True bugs have piercing-sucking mouthparts (sort of an elongated beak) that fit on the underside of the body between the legs.

Twig girdlers- amazing creatures!

When I first started with Extension, someone brought in a bag of twig tips that appeared to have been sawed off, very neatly. This led to my discovery of twig girdlers. I had a few questions this week on twig girdlers, so I thought I'd add information here so more people could learn about these cool beetles. Yes, they can be somewhat of a pest when they are munching on your tree, but you really have to admire their precision.

Twig girdlers are a type of longhorned beetle (they get the longhorn part from their long antennae, not because they are affiliated with UT, or should I say TU for all those good Ags). After mating, the female beetles chew a circular notch around twigs or small branches of the tree. Eggs are laid into notches chewed in the bark above the circular notch. Larvae hatch and tunnel under the bark of the twig.

Since the beetle "girdles" branches, the tips eventually die and fall off the tree. This is usually when I get phone calls since branch tips are "mysteriously" dropping from the tree with no visible insects (hint: the insects are inside the branch tips). Unfortunately, it is very difficult to catch the beetles in the act, so spraying really does not help manage the beetles. Sanitation is your friend- clean up and dispose of the twigs and small branches that have fallen off the tree as they contain larvae.