Emerald Ash Borer

The Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive species that will kill an infested ash tree. Treatment, if started early, can save the tree.

What is it?

Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) is a species of beetle native to Asia. The ash borer has invaded the United States over the past 15 years. In areas outside of where the beetle is native, it is highly destructive to Ash trees. Treatment is required for all Ash trees in an infested area or else the tree will die.

Where is the Emerald Ash Borer?

Click here to view the confirmed locations of the Emerald Ash Borer

Plants Affected:

The Emerald Ash Borer will infest all of the Ash trees in an area. The most common species of tree are Green, White, and Black ash. Green ash tend to be the most susceptible.

Damage Caused:

Adult ash borers will eat the leaves of its host tree. When the time comes to lay eggs, the EAB will lay her eggs beneath the bark of the tree. Once the eggs hatch the larvae feed on the phloem, cambium, and outer xylem layers of the tree. This feeding creates a distinct serpentine pattern in these layers of the tree. It is this feeding on the tree that ultimately leads to the death of the host. The tree is no longer able to sufficiently take water and nutrients from the soil. If left untreated damage will begin to show within a year and total tree death will occur in as little as five years.

Timeframe:

Adult EAB will emerge from beneath the bark of their host trees in the springtime. Once they emerge they will begin to feed on the canopy for a short period of time. At this point mating begins and the females will lay their eggs in the bark. During the summer and the fall the larvae will begin to feed on the layers of the tree just below the bark. Oftentimes a full life cycle of an individual EAB will last over two seasons. Because of this, damage to a host tree can be happening constantly.

Treatment Method:

There are two methods of treatment for EAB. The more well known of these is called TreeAge and it involves drilling a hole into the tree itself. While TreeAge has shown to be a fairly effective treatment method short-term, repeated drilling into the tree has shown to cause significant stress and damage to the tree, and often will lead to the death of the tree if drilling is done improperly or over multiple years.

At Emerald Tree Care, LLC, we utilize a method of treatment called the Wedgle method. This process involves only removing a small piece of the bark and injecting product into the tree directly via a hypodermic needle. This non-invasive procedure allows for multiple injections to be made without causing any stress or damage to the tree. Because multiple injections can be made, we are able to provide more thorough and complete treatment for EAB.

Wedgle has shown time and time again that it is not only a safer method of treatment than TreeAge, but it is also significantly more effective at treating for the ash borer.

In addition to the Wedgle trunk injections which occur during the summer, we also do a soil treatment in the spring which provides additional protection from the EAB.