New Effort To Find Emerald Ash Borer Revealed In Seminar At The Morton Arboretum

Purple Traps Now Being Deployed

LISLE, IL (July 7, 2006) – Federal authorities revealed they are employing another device in efforts to detect any additional Emerald ash borer (EAB) that might be present in Kane County. APHIS, the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, has provided 50 special EAB traps to the three agencies, according to Jeff Coath, State Survey Specialist of USDA APHIS.

The Kane County Forest Preserve is deploying 35 such traps in ash tree canopies this week in a three-and-a-half mile grid pattern from the EAB infestation’s original location, Coath said. Ten other traps were sent to the City of Chicago, and five more were sent to the Cook County Forest Preserve. The boxy traps are deep purple - the color that appears to attract the borer - and contain a tree extract.

Coath addressed about 100 municipal foresters and tree care industry representatives in a seminar hosted and chaired by The Morton Arboretum in cooperation with the Illinois Arborist Association (IAA) Thursday. The seminar provided the group with additional information about the pest, and efforts to cope with the infestation.

The group also saw a PowerPoint presentation designed to help foresters educate their local officials about EAB. The Arboretum’s Edith Makra, arborist and Community Trees Advocate, developed the presentation, which will be available via the IAA and Arboretum web sites.

Municipal foresters should cooperate with the Arboretum-led EAB detection survey, or get more deeply involved, said Sarah Tien, city forester of the Park Ridge department of public works. “Detection trees are important,” Tien said, referring to ash trees (formerly called “trap trees”) specifically set-up to attract egg-laying borers. Workers later cut the trees and strip the bark to see if the EAB larva is present.

Makra asked for the foresters’ cooperation to identify any declining ash trees that are likely to be removed because they pose a hazard. She asked the foresters to strip the bark of such trees once they are cut down to check for evidence of EAB, in coordination with the detection survey. If no EAB is found, the tree can be disposed. However, if suspected EAB larva is discovered, it would be sent to a federal lab for a positive identification, and the Illinois Department of Agriculture would be notified. No infested ash should be moved unless state or federal officials oversee the movement.

The public is strongly urged not to move firewood, as this can move the bug as well. Coath says his internet search found 272 firewood dealers in Illinois, and 505 Illinois Department of Public Health permitted campgrounds

Emerald ash borer has killed at least 15-million trees in Michigan, and an estimated 15-20-million trees are dead or dying in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio and Windsor, Ontario in Canada.

The Morton Arboretum is an internationally recognized 1,700-acre outdoor museum with collections of more than 3,700 kinds of trees, shrubs, and other plants from around the world. The Arboretum's beautiful natural landscapes, gardens, research and education programs, and year-round family activities support its mission – the planting and conservation of trees and other plants for a greener, healthier, and more beautiful world. Conveniently located at I-88 and Rte. 53 in Lisle, Illinois, the Arboretum is open 7 days a week, 365 days a year, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (CDT) and 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. (CST). The Children's Garden is open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (CDT) and 9:30 to 4 p.m. (CST). Visit www.mortonarb.org or call 630/968-0074 to learn more.

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