Backyard Woodland by Josh VanBrakle

Author:Josh VanBrakle
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Countryman Press
Published: 2016-08-02T16:00:00+00:00

Insecticide treatments won’t last forever. Depending on the species you want to control, some insecticides will only work for two or three years. The emerald ash borer falls into this category. Against other species, a treatment may last longer, but eventually you will need to reapply the chemical.

Because of the many costs and complications involved, the first step in treating your trees is to identify the ones you absolutely want to save. Focus on large, healthy trees that either enhance your view or that would be dangerous if they died. These will likely be yard or street trees rather than trees deeper in your woods.

There’s a lot of debate among professionals about whether to treat trees with chemicals like this. Some argue that despite the costs, treating trees is cheaper than removing them, particularly when they’re close to obstacles like power lines. Once ash trees die, for example, they’re expensive to remove because they quickly become unsafe for an arborist to climb. If you elect to remove trees rather than treat them, it’s best to remove them after they show signs of infestation but before they die.

I believe the insecticide option just isn’t practical for most landowners. Environmental impact aside, it’s a temporary fix to an ongoing problem. At best, I see treatment as a way of spreading out when your trees become infested. Instead of them all dying at once, only a few will die at a time, which means you won’t have to bear the cost of removing them all in one year.

That said, if you have a few ash trees of great sentimental value, limited chemical treatment is probably the only way to save them. In these cases, I recommend that you hire an arborist to check out your specific situation and determine what will work best for you and your trees.

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