Emerald Ash Borer insecticide experience?

15 years ago

This week our paper had articles reporting the Emerald Ash Borer was found in South Eastern Missouri. Having bought a house six years ago with a number of ash trees planted just a little too close this news got me thinking about a plan.

I've decided to use insecticides which are available to the public in an attempt to prevent infestation until my trees are obviously infected or the state decides to force me to cut them down. Also I'll start this summer figuring either the bug is really ahead of detection or its worth it to start the poison flowing up my tree's veins.

Doing some reading I've decided nothing is guaranteed to be effective but the Bayer Advanced Tree and Shrub Insect Control product with Imidacloprid

is the most effective. As with most poisons its certain to kill frogs that come in direct contact with it and wreck havoc with insects that don't bother me, but I like the way I can apply it to the soil around the tree, maybe even fence that area off for a month or so.

I've noticed the timber industry is trying to figure out how to get dead infected wood out of quarantine zones

lol, greedy and lazy fellas they are. Does point out the Bayer poison works on contact though.

Anyone have any experience with that stuff or these "ACECAPÂ® 97 Systemic Insecticide Tree Implants"? Or other control means? Saving the 3 big ash trees near my house is probably worth $100 or $200 a year worth of trouble to me.

Just another web site

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Comments (5)

stompede
15 years ago
I don't know how successful you will be treating trees that big. You may want to get an arborist to handle that for you. Additionally, I don't think they are recommending treatment unless you are close to a quarantined area. It may be worth treating if you have had redheaded ash borer or lilac/ash borer before. They now know the beetles can travel farther than previously thought, so expect a more widespread eradication effort.

This is the APHIS page for EAB. They usually put out monthly updates and will be a good place (or your local dept. of ag) to get updated info.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/newsroom/hot_issues/emerald_ash_borer/emerald_ash_borer.shtml
Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for that link. Has PLENTY of good reading!

Oh, I'm not optimistic, just figure a 10% chance of keeping them trees alive is worth the cost of a few cases of beer a year. Probably not worth the cost of professional treatments though when its not a sure thing they'll work.

I'm starting this summer because: A couple of them tests showed it took 2 years for bigger trees to "ingest" enough insecticide to make a difference, and since the EAB isn't the easiest of bugs to spot I think its always one step ahead of them.

Both Springfield IL and Popular Bluff MO are 120 miles away from me.
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For the most up to date information on Emerald Ash Borer and how to treat it, see this publication: http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/Publication%20Files/On%20Your%20Street/Urban%20Forestry/AshTree_EAB_Insecticide_Factsheet.pdf (this link is also shown at the bottom of this message in clickable format) which was written by a set of university experts from Ohio, Indiana and Michigan. They all have a LOT of expertise over multiple years, and really do know what they are talking about. I treated quite a number of my ash trees last year, with great success. Use a product containing Imidacloprid, and apply it as a soil drench evenly around the tree within 18" of the trunk. The cheapest product I could find that is available to the general public is Dominion 2L, which is a 21.4% concentrate of Imidacloprid. Apply it at the rate of .4 fluid ounces(that is 4/10 fl. oz.) per inch of diameter of the tree you wish to treat. (YES, that is twice the rate on the label, and this rate IS approved for use on Ash trees against Emerald Ash Borers without harm to the environment if applied following the brochure.) Make sure you remove all leaf litter and other organic matter from around the area you will treat. The reason is that this other organic matter will absorb the imidacloprid (bind it up) before the tree can take it up through its root system. You treat ONCE A YEAR sometime around mid to end of April (at my latitude of 40 degrees north -- Columbus, Ohio). The treatment lasts for an entire year. It will NOT prevent mature grubs that formed the previous year from emerging the year of application, but WILL kill the larvae that emerge from their egg-laying during the year of application, which protects the tree that year from their feeding. By the way, a single bottle of Dominion 2L will cost about $26, and there is enough insecticide to treat about 64 cumulative diameter inches of trees (e.g., 3 trees that are 22" in diameter (69" circumference), and that's a pretty big tree to treat for $8 a year!). If your trees are smaller, then it will take less of the product and treat more trees for fewer dollars per application, or a single tree for a much longer time (years). Mix about 1 to 1 1/2 gallons of water per tree with the appropriate fluid ounces of imidacloprid, and pour it SLOWLY AND EVENLY around the very base of the tree where the greatest concentration of roots are. Pour slowly enough that it soaks in and does not run off. Then keep that area moist for the next 2 weeks (DO NOT WATER DAILY!) -- natural rains in the spring should suffice without any extra watering in most cases. ANY QUESTIONS? Please read the bulletin I gave a URL of below for MUCH more information on treatment options for Ash trees. By the way, only mix enough product to use immediately. Tightly cap the rest. Imidacloprid is generally safe for humans and other animals, so you should not have to worry about any cats, dogs, squirrls, etc. Good luck! Here is a link that might be useful: Insecticide Options for Protecting Ash Trees from Emerald Ash Borer
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Jrsavoie, I ordered a few gallons of imadichloropid (spelling error) concentrate and have been spreading it around two of mine yearly. At first I was going to do just one but then I realized how long a supply I had. Will it work? Who knows. That vitamin C pill might help keep the cold away and the cost is low so I take it. At the time no one locally was willing to warranty their snake oil treatment so I decided to do it myself. We are in the infancy of treating this bug. Next time I am in an area that has had a long term infestation I will see if there are any surviving ash in the parks or botanical gardens and report back with what they have been using.
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6 months is most likely the half-life in soil. In a compost pile, with vigorous microbial activity, it is likely to be shorter than that. In a pile mixed with other materials, where leaves from a treated tree make up only part of the pile, there will not be much left at all. Usually people worry about two aspects: will it harm the garden plants or critters (a la persistent herbicides damaging plants), or is it potentially toxic to grow food in it? As for the former, once diluted with other ingredients, composted, diluted again by adding to soil, then diluted again because only a fraction would be taken up by plants (if at all), it seems unlikely that beneficial insects could be harmed. I don't know the mode of action of these ash borer pesticides (whether it works on the larvae, adult, etc.) or whether they are toxic to earthworms. I should think that the biodegradability of the stuff in the compost pile and all the dilution steps would result in much less of the chemical available compared to spraying it on the original tree. As for toxicity to humans, again there are multiple dilution and uptake steps combined with biodegradation. If I lived in a grove of all treated ash trees, I might not use the compost on my vegetables. Or at least I'd try to find out how fast it actually biodegrades and its relative toxicity to humans. But that's my bag, I know the average gardener is going to have to make a judgment call without consulting the scientific literature.
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gj, My understanding is the beetle lays it's eggs in the bark of the ash trees. I copied this from a CSU Forestry bulletin: The 1/2-inch long, dark green adult beetles are active from late May through July, as they feed on ash trees and lay eggs on the bark. After hatching, the resulting EAB larvae tunnel into the bark to feed in the phloem and outer sapwood layers of the tree, producing galleries that girdle and ultimately kill the tree within two to four years. These expanding S-shaped galleries can be located when the bark is removed. EAB adults typically fly up to a half-mile from where they emerge to infest new trees. Distribution of the pest over much longer distances is possible due to people transporting ash firewood, logs, nursery stock or other wood. gj, Is your concern the insecticide residue from ash leaves in your beds or is the worry the potential of transporting beetle larvae to a wider area? If you're worried about the residue, the chemical often used is a 1.47% imidacloprid solution. I found this info on imidacloprid from the National Pesticide Information Center: What happens to imidacloprid in the environment? Imidacloprid can last for months or years in soil. The residues become more tightly bound to the soil with time. Imidacloprid is broken down rapidly by water and sunlight. The pH and temperature of water affect the speed of the imidacloprid breakdown process. Imidacloprid may leach from soil into groundwater under some conditions. Imidacloprid is broken down into a number of other chemicals depending on which bonds in the molecule are broken. Can imidacloprid affect birds, fish, or other wildlife? Imidacloprid is not very toxic to birds and slightly toxic to fish, although this varies by species. Imidacloprid is very toxic to honeybees and other beneficial insects. The role, if any, of imidacloprid in Colony Collapse Disorder is not yet clear. Scientists have shown that plants grown in treated soil may have imidacloprid residues in their nectar and pollen at levels that are below those shown to cause effects on bees in laboratory experiments. Other beneficial animals may also be affected. Green lacewings did not avoid nectar of plants grown in soil treated with imidacloprid. The lacewings that fed from the treated plants had lower survival than lacewings that had not fed from treated plants. Ladybugs that ate aphids from plants grown in treated soil also showed reduced survival and reproduction. Scientists are actively studying the effects of imidacloprid on bees and other invertebrates. As they finish their studies, new information will be coming out that will help define the risks to these animals. I've inserted a link below to chemicals used to treat EAB. It's 15 pages or so and you'll need to scroll down 8 or 10 pages to reach the table in yellow listing the chemicals. This is probably way more than you wanted to know, sorry! Chemicals used to treat EAB Barb
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Dibbit
15 years ago
Being on the pessimistic side, I think I might start thinking about replacement trees. If, like me, you are frugal, then starting your own from seed, or digging up seedlings, might be a way to go. If you grow your own, and keep potting them on into larger pots, you can have 15-gal. root systems, and 6-12' trees at least 4, maybe 5 years, down the road, which seems to be about when you will know if your insecticide/protection program is working or not.

The size will be NOTHING like the magnificent ashes you now have growing, but it will be a start in providing it to you again....

Of course, if you can afford it, you CAN buy very large trees as replacements, but if you have read through old posts, you realize that the establishment period for large trees is long, and takes much care - the smaller trees would probably catch up to the bigger ones at the end of 3-6 years, and cost a LOT less, both in money and in effort/water/etc..

I hope you do succeed in your endeavors - and if you do end up with healthy ashes, and no need for your "little" trees, then I am sure you can gift them to someone, even to your town for park plantings.
jagm
15 years ago
no experience with the borer, but my 25' crabapple would literally rain japanese beetles. the whole place used to buzz like a high voltage power station. carbaryl would decrease the numbers dramatically, but you got a carpet of dead beetles to clean up and they will come back.

after bayer imidacloprid treatment, you cannot find the beetles if you go looking for them... it is a nasty chemical, but does work as advertised.
arbordave (SE MI)
15 years ago
If youÂre willing to invest the money, you can definitely keep your ash trees alive. The Bayer product (imidacloprid) has been relatively effective against EAB, and there are other products being tested now (not yet available to the public) that also look very promising. IÂd recommend waiting until you know that the beetle has been detected nearby before starting treatments. If the nearest infestation is still 120 miles away, you should have some time.

Emerald Ash Borer insecticide experience?

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stompede

Toronado3800 Zone 6 St Louis
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Emerald Ash Borer insecticide experience?

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stompede

Toronado3800 Zone 6 St LouisOriginal Author

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Dibbit

jagm

arbordave (SE MI)

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