There are always reasons to be aware of what is happening with many of our plants. If you watch the nightly news from South Dakota, there is a sense of urgency about the ash trees in the Sioux Falls area because of the Emerald ash borer. Whenever something happens out of the ordinary with our ash trees, we all sort of hit the panic button but while it is good to be vigilant, it is also good to make sure we all know what it is (or isn’t) what we think it might be. We have such a good group of horticulturists at the University of Minnesota and since we are talking South Dakota, also within the South Dakota State University group of folks as well. We are very fortunate to have access to both in this situation. As it appears that with Emerald ash borer, it is only a matter of time before it comes to our neighborhoods. After the story broke about EAB being in Sioux Falls, it showed up in Wright County too.

This being said, there is always more to the story than what we first hear. A good case in point just recently came up with some strange maggot-type worms falling from an ash tree locally. The first thing that these folks did was to find out some answers as soon as they had the time to do it. The sooner you know what it is you are dealing with as far as your ash trees are concerned, the better it is for one and all who have ash trees in their yards. This is probably most of us. I, too, have three beautiful ash trees in my front yard that shade our house and two generations of family have played under these trees. So, we are all vigilant in watching for Emerald ash borer in our neighborhoods.

Ash trees are a funny plant. We all enjoy the shade that they give us immensely and many of us have very old trees growing in our yards. I often wonder why we put such a value on them because they are often the first trees to have limbs break off in storms and they often have problems with diseases such as Ash anthracnose which causes them to lose their leaves shortly after they are leafing out. They have all of these quirks. I think maybe that is one of the things we like the most about them. I think we as humans, believe that nature is supposed to be perfect and it surely is not. Trees are far from it and sometimes I find myself looking at a tree that is so perfect that surely it was man made. There once was something like that in Marshall but since it has been cut back that it has lost its perfect shape (it is a Maple) and I still drive by it every day.

Ash trees, whether we are talking about Black Ash or Green (sometimes called Red) Ash, are native to Minnesota. The EAB beetle came originally on pallets in Michigan and from there, the population exploded because our ash trees don’t have a natural defense against the beetles. In fact, there are some arborists that have placed Black and Green Ash on the endangered list.

There are people out there who are investigating how to control or get rid of EAB but in the meantime the U of M is figuring out what to do with all of the wood that is coming from the diseased wood. We are trying to make something good out of all of the bad. It is a work in progress. However, if you are like me, a tree hugger, you are probably already spent some time looking up into your ash trees, paying close attention to what is to come. We can treat the trees if necessary but if you have a lot of them, it might be well time to figure out a plan B for that grove or large stand of trees. Once EAB gets into an area, it only takes about 3-4 years before the trees are dead. This does not mean that we need to run out and buy treatments for our trees today. If you want a blessing about our cold-hearted winters, this would be it. The beetle has a hard time moving around during the winter, so it buys our trees at least 5-6 months out of the year to rest in peace. I don’t think we often think of plants or animals being on the endangered list, but it is happening right before our very eyes. This is not a tiger in Africa or a fish on the East Coast, this is something real that is happening right here in our area. It is often made more difficult by all of the many things that affect our beautiful ash trees-diseases, insects, weather. Is there a solution? Yes, stop planting ash trees and choose something else and make sure you don’t plant your whole yard or grove with the same plants. You can find some wonderful information online at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture on EAB.

Oh, and those maggots? It turns out that they are Ash tree seed weevils eating the seeds in the whirly birds that normally fall to the ground. They eat themselves silly and then fall to the ground only to overwinter in the soil until next year. Who knew we could have weevils in Minnesota? They also occur in walnuts and in acorns too just to name a few.

For more information on gardening, you can reach me at s.dejaeghere@me.com And remember, if you are interested in becoming a master gardener, the deadline is this coming Monday, Oct. 1.