What's next for ash trees? Emerald Ash Borer wreaks havoc.
Reflecting back on this past year, it was a sad time for the ash trees in Loudoun and surrounding counties. We have removed nearly 400 dead or dying ash affected by the Emerald Ash Borer.
It's heartbreaking to see these 150-year-old beauties fall to such a tiny parasite. At the Snickers Gap Christmas Tree Farm in Bluemont, the three dead ash trees were closer to 200 years old!
I personally say a prayer for these giants that have fallen victim to the Emerald Ash Borer. Is this the end to our beautiful Ash Trees?
Help is on the way! Thanks to the University of Delaware, the United States Department of Agriculture and Agricultural Research Service, a host specific parasite wasp so new and obscure that it doesn’t even have a common name yet (Spathius Galena) has been approved for release to help control the invasive Emerald Ash Borer. Smaller than a gnat, the Spathius Galena wasp will not harm humans or other insects.
Right now, this is the very best hope for saving our majestic ash trees!
Emerald Ash Borer is an invasive wood boring beetle introduced to North America sometime in the 1990s.
- It was brought here, likely from Asia, in ash wood used to make shipping pallets and packing material used on cargo ships.
- The borer was reported killing ash trees in Detroit and Windsor in 2002.
- It has been detected in more than 30 states.
Emerald Ash Borer
Ash Tree Damage