Category Archives: EAB Emerald Ash Borer

Emerald ash borers (EABs) continue to wreak havoc across Minnesota from early spring through fall. Though their active season only tends to last from May until October, the damage they can do in that time frame is significant. Part of being a responsible tree owner in Winona, MN, is keeping an eye out for the invasive tree pests that inhabit our state and contacting tree pest experts when you think your trees may be at risk. At Maier Tree and Lawn, we recommend taking active steps to limit the spread of borers and provide timely and comprehensive support for impacted ash trees and properties that have had contact with any damaging tree pests.

Emerald Ash Bores

The tree pests we get in Minnesota range from fairly harmless to impressively destructive with emerald ash borers falling far along the destructive side. Emerald ash borers are an invasive species that are in active quarantine; the bugs can kill ash trees rapidly and after attacking one tree, they will quickly move on to the next. Limiting the spread of these bugs requires a collective effort on the part of tree-owning Minnesotans—especially if you have ash trees on your property.

How to Identify Bugs

Some steps you can take to prevent the spread of borers include learning how to identify the bugs, ensuring that you are not moving infested wood around the state, and alerting professionals in your area if you spot emerald ash borers in the wild.

Using a Visual Guide

The bugs are unique in their appearance and can be identified on sight if you know what to look for. Using visual guides like this can help narrow your search if you have suspicions or concerns. Even if you don’t see any borers on the surface of your trees, you can still watch for other signs such as surface damage and declining ash tree health as potential warning signs that borers may be present.

If you suspect that your ash trees or trees in your neighborhood have been impacted by emerald ash borers, be sure to contact a tree care professional before the damage can spread further. The tree pest professionals with Maier Tree and Lawn can help identify emerald ash borer damage and develop a pest removal plan that will make every effort to save and preserve your trees.

If you’ve experienced tree pest damage or have concerns about tree pests on your Winona, MN, property, contact Maier Tree and Lawn today at (507) 454-7000 or visit our website here for more information. Catching tree pests early is essential in saving trees, so be sure to watch for signs and symptoms and reach out as soon as a concern arises.

When you live in Winona, MN, it’s easy to find solace in the fact that a good old-fashioned Minnesota winter can kill just about any pest under the sun. When it comes to certain tree pests, like the prolific emerald ash borer, your trees might not be so lucky. At Maier Tree and Lawn, we’ve seen the type of damage that emerald ash borers can do, and unfortunately, they may still be able to cause that damage after winter melts away.

Emerald ash borers are a sturdy sort of tree pest. Their ability to burrow deep into the flesh of trees plus their hibernation cycle allows them to survive in your trees through the winter. Even worse, a tough winter could actually be bad news for your trees in the years to come. Similar to how antibiotics can lose effectiveness over time, a brutal winter will only kill the borers that cannot withstand severe temperatures, allowing the hardier bugs that survive to pass along those traits through breeding. Assuming that winter will take care of your tree pests without further investigation will not only potentially doom your trees but may in fact be dooming other trees down the line.

With this is mind, tree enthusiasts looking to prevent these stubborn pests may want to familiarize themselves with the signs and symptoms of an emerald ash borer infestation. Spotting these signs in fall and winter means keeping your eyes open for subtle indicators of poor health that may be difficult to discern during the summer months when there’s an abundance of foliage. Bark splitting, S-shapes under the bark of your trees, and increased woodpecker activity may all be signs of impending trouble.

If your trees are infested with emerald ash borers, they can die within two to four years unless interventive steps are taken. Infestations can spread from tree to tree and even through the transportation of firewood, which becomes all the more relevant during the cold winter months.

If you’re concerned your Winona, MN, trees are showing signs of an emerald ash borer infestation, have them inspected immediately by our tree pest professionals. Call Maier Tree and Lawn at (507) 454-7000 or visit our website for more information on tree pests and how to fight back against the dreaded emerald ash borer.

We’re officially deep into fireplace season in Minnesota, which means it’s a great time to examine the laws involved with procuring firewood for your Rochester, MN, home. Not all homeowners know that there are significant restrictions on the movement of firewood in Minnesota and many parts of the United States due to the prevalence and dangers of pests and diseases. The tree care specialists at Maier Tree and Lawn implore you to check your trees for signs of infestation, especially for non-native pests such as emerald ash borer, before you chop any of your trees this chilly winter season.

Gathering firewood seems, on the surface, to be a very straightforward process. Choose tree, chop tree, take wood, done! However, taking that wood anymore than the few steps from your yard to your home could get you into legal trouble faster than you can strike a match. The danger of wood transport lies with the little bugs that could be tagging along for a ride. Even a single batch of contaminated wood can be a catalyst that kicks off a widespread infestation, so keeping any unhealthy areas quarantined is vital to the statewide recovery process.

During your regular tree care regimen, be sure to watch out for any signs of emerald ash borer, especially if you have neighbors or relatives that may have interest in firewood.  Unusual thinning, grooves, leaf death, or other visual irregularities should be checked by a tree care professional before the wood of said tree is transported away from your area, even if it’s just going a town over. Even if the culprit isn’t the emerald ash borer, you should still evaluate odd spots before sharing any of your personal stash.

If you’ve detected signs of emerald ash borer, or are concerned about the general condition of your Rochester, MN, trees, contact the tree care experts at Maier Tree and Lawn at (507) 454-7000, or by visiting our website here for more information. And remember, if you plan on visiting a cabin or relatives this year, be sure to purchase your firewood on location and through a DNR approved source!

If you have been following the news, you’re aware of a damaging little insect called the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). Although it wasn’t spotted in the U.S. until 2002, it has certainly made a name for itself. EAB has been confirmed in Winona and Olmsted counties, and most recently in Fillmore county. At Maier Tree and Lawn, we’ve been tracking the progression of EAB in the Winona and Rochester area since it was first spotted.

What is the Emerald Ash borer, and what makes it so dangerous? First of all, it is an invasive species. That means it isn’t native to the area and doesn’t have the natural limitations to spreading as it does in its native China and Southeast Asia. The preferred diet and place of incubation for EAB is ash trees. In its native land, ash trees are of such a variety that they are able to resist the shiny green insect. Not so here in the U.S.

It is believed the Emerald Ash Borer made its way to North America by hitching a ride across the Pacific on shipping crates made of an Asian variety of ash lumber. Once here, it found a veritable banquet of ash trees to feed upon and nurture the larvae. Since it has no real predators and our ash trees lack natural resistance, the Emerald Ash Borer is pretty much left unchallenged as it multiplies its way across the country.

There are, however, steps that can be taken to limit the advance of EAB. A simple action everyone can take is to not transport firewood into or out of parks and campgrounds. Once moved to a new location, EAB will seek out ash trees to lay their eggs upon. By observing this easy to follow practice, everyone can help stop the advance of this invasive species.

If you have ash trees on your property, you need to be aware of signs of infestation and how to prevent it from establishing a foothold. Because the Emerald Ash Borer is difficult to detect early, it’s a good idea to contact a professional arborist if you have questions or concerns. Maier Tree and Lawn can examine your ash trees and perform a risk assessment. Our arborists know where there have been sightings of the insect and how likely it is to reach your property.

If EAB is present, there are several methods of treating ash trees with an effective insecticide to stop it. There are three common methods of applying these insecticides. An arborist will know which will be most effective for your situation. These methods are:

• Above ground application. This methods applies either a liquid or granules around the base of the tree.
• Inject chemical into soil. In an area where run-off is a problem, it may be advisable to have the insecticide applied several inches below the surface of the soil.
• Injection into tree trunk. To inject an insecticide into the trunk, holes are drilled into the tree near the base and the chemical is delivered directly into the tree.

Each of these methods is intended to get the insecticide into the tree’s system to flow throughout the tree. The reason it is so important to get an insecticide into the tree is to stop the larvae that bore their way into the tree to incubate. As they bore their way into a tree, they block the natural flow of nutrients throughout the tree, essentially starving it to death.

Trees also need to be treated every few years to continue to resist the invading insect, based on your consulting arborists recommendations. The cost of treatment and prevention may seem expensive, however, studies have shown that treating a tree is less expensive that having a mature tree removed, and it will preserve a resource that can take decades to mature.

If you have any questions about the risk to your healthy ash trees or treatment of a tree, contact Maier Tree and Lawn. As we like to say, “At Maier Tree and Lawn, we care about trees and all things green and growing.” We do our best to stay on top of the Emerald Ash Borer threat and methods to stop its spread. To protect your ash trees, contact us at 507-286-8733 in Rochester, or 507-454-7000 in Winona.