May 15th, 2012
Bur oak, a great tree…for great spaces!
I saw some beautiful Bur oaks today. This tree is included in my favorites list on the Plantplaces website. Read more here>>>
May 15th, 2012
Powdery Mildew Diseases
DISEASE DIGEST
This disease seems to have arrived early this year, as with many events in the spring of 2012. BYGLers are getting reports of powdery mildew diseases on a number of plants including ninebark (pathogen: Podosphaera aphanis var. physocarpi) and crabapple (pathogen: Podosphaera leucotricha), with the powdery spores and mycelium of these fungi evident signs of the pathogen. It is well-known that the early development of powdery mildew on crabapple and apple is due to the fact that the fungus overwinters in the buds, and possibly this is also true for the powdery mildew pathogen on ninebark, and would explain why this disease is seen so early in the season. Read more >>>
May 15th, 2012
Annual Maple Leaf-Drop Commences
BUG BYTES
The annual leaf drop caused by MAPLE PETIOLE BORER (Caulocampus acericaulis) on sugar maples is beginning to occur in southwest Ohio. Although sugar maples are generally preferred, this sawfly will also occasionally infest other maples. Fortunately, while the number of fallen leaves beneath an infested tree may look dramatic, defoliation seldom exceeds levels that are considered detrimental to the overall health of the tree. Read more>>>
May 15th, 2012
ODA Adds Second Ohio County to the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid Quarantine
BUG BYTES
The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) announced on May 7, 2012 a discovery of a hemlock‐killing pest in Washington County in southeast Ohio. Hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA) is a small, aphid‐like insect native to Asia that threatens the health and sustainability of eastern hemlock and Carolina hemlock in the eastern United States. Read more>>>
April 20th, 2012
Expanding Drought in the US
It’s been a dry spring in Cincinnati and while certainly not a drought at this point, it’s easy to miss after the record rains of 2011. Be sure new trees and transplants are watered as needed. There is actually expanding drought over the US as this recent article explains here>>>
April 17th, 2012
When Beetles, Blights, Borers and Mildew attack!
| How will we solve Boxwood Blight and the next new pest?Our industry has seen a significant increase in the rate of introduction of new pest and disease threats. Recent threats like Emerald Ash Borer and P. ramorum (so-called Sudden Oak Death) have spread quickly, causing significant disruption to trade and costly losses to inventory, sales and in the landscape. This spring we face two new threats that have already proven devastating in Europe: Boxwood Blight and Impatiens Downy Mildew. With cuts in government spending tightening up on already limited research dollars, and other threatened industries and conservationists eying our industry as the threat, not the solution, we rely on a strong nationally coordinated plan of attack. National efforts need to direct both research priorities and regulatory approaches to ensure an efficient and effective response that protects our businesses from disruption, particularly during busy sales seasons. Click here to watch as ANLA’s Washington Impact series takes a look at how a national effort can help our industry face new threats and provides an update on the Boxwood Blight threat. For a deeper look at the research and regulatory plan to fight Boxwood Blight, click here. |
April 17th, 2012
Homeowner Association Tree and Resource Management
Davey Resource Group is pleased to present a website (davey.com/hoa) that contains the results and products of a project developed to educate and influence homeowners associations (HOAs) to become better stewards of trees and natural resources on their properties.
The project was funded by a National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council grant, developed by Davey and supported by national partners. Leaders or managers of HOAs directly affect the quality and quantity of landscape trees, forest cover and natural resources on their property. Yet, these groups may not have the knowledge and tools needed to maintain and enhance these green assets for the benefit and safety of residents, visitors and the community at-large.
That’s why Davey and our partners created the HOA Owner’s Manual that contains educational resources that specifically address tree and natural resource management. The manual is an interactive computer program that contains practical information on managing trees and natural resources, links and tools for more information, examples of contracts and specifications, and other guides to help HOAs achieve the goal of creating livable and safe neighborhoods.
If you are an HOA leader or professional property manager, you can use this manual to:
· Spend landscape maintenance funds more efficiently
· Increase your understanding of tree benefits
· Improve tree care and planting practices on your properties
· Create new and useful partnerships between the HOA, residents, local tree experts and the community
If you are a municipal forester, extension agent, professional arborist, or natural resource expert/advocate, you can use the Manual’s companion
Leadership Guide to conduct a short workshop designed to encourage and engage HOAs in better managing their trees and natural resources.
The guide contains presentation and support materials for simple workshops intended to be led by local experts. All of these resources are free to use on the site and to copy. Please share this website and the materials found on it with others.
April 15th, 2012
Sustainable Plants Rating System
by Steve Foltz, Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
Search plants by sustainability ratings and other factors here.
The sustainable plants rating system was developed to give some guidance to plant selection in a given a given region. Read more here>>>
April 8th, 2012
Happy Easter…beautiful, sunny, and dry…
Happy Easter!
Not to push the pacic button…yet, but it’s dry out there, and little rain is in the forecast for the next week. The upper layers of soil are dry, and getting drier. New transplants and new trees will need water.
March 26th, 2012
Officials Confirm First Detection of Boxwood Blight in Ohio
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
REYNOLDSBURG, Ohio (Mar. 26, 2012)—The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) today announced the discovery of boxwood blight at the Red Mill Farm of Losely Nursery in Lake County in northeast Ohio. Boxwood blight is a disease caused by a fungus (Cylindrocladium pseudonaviculatum) that threatens the health and sustainability of boxwood plants. This is the first detection of boxwood blight in Ohio.
Boxwood blight was first detected in the United States in North Carolina in October 2011. Plant pathologists in the United Kingdom first identified the disease in the mid‐1990’s. It is unclear how the disease was introduced into the United States. To date, Ohio is the 10th state to identify boxwood blight. The suspect infection was reported to inspectors with the ODA and the Ohio Plant Diagnostic Network (OPDN) who then sent samples to the United States Department of Agriculture –Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS) for confirmation.
Officials at this time are unsure how the disease was introduced into the Red Mill Farm. ODA inspectors have issued a restriction on all boxwood plants located at the Red Mill Farm and will be conducting further sampling. “Although it is unfortunate to have confirmation on the farm, all known infected plants have been destroyed and we are working with the Ohio Department of Agriculture to prevent any further spread of boxwood blight” said Andrew Harding, Vice President and General Manager of Herman Losely and Son, Inc. This disease is spread primarily by water (rain splash, irrigation, runoff, etc.), by the movement of plant material in the trade, and through contaminated tools, vehicles, boots, etc. Initial symptoms of the disease on boxwood plants include leaf spots and blights, rapid defoliation, distinctive black cankers on stems, and severe dieback. Most boxwood plants are not killed by the disease, but will become so defoliated as to be aesthetically unacceptable.
‐30‐
Note to Editor: For more information on boxwood blight, please refer to the attached fact sheet
provided by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station.
Media Contact: Brett Gates, Public Information Officer, 614‐752‐9712