We had been treating ours and it was looking pretty healthy but it had a major split in the storms last week. Going to have to come down.
Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) - Treating green ash to keep them alive.
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I've got a 28-30 inch circumference beauty in front of my house. Provides great shade and we'd love it to stay forever.
I did treat a couple of times years ago. At the time, it was about $10 per inch of circumference to treat with injection.
I've talked to a handful of tree guys and even then ones who treat it say its just a matter of time. Many in my neighborhood have already lost theirs. I had one tree guy say the whole treatment deal was a hoax... which I didn't really believe. But what he did recommend was a spring and fall dose of miracle grow. So I've done that the last few years and I am becoming a believer. Basically a bottle of liquid miracle grow diluted in a 5 gallon bucket of water and pour it all at the base of the tree. Simple as that. Could just be dumb luck but the tree still has fresh growth and no dead spots. Been much cheaper than the injection. I tell myself I am giving the tree its vitamins
I did treat a couple of times years ago. At the time, it was about $10 per inch of circumference to treat with injection.
I've talked to a handful of tree guys and even then ones who treat it say its just a matter of time. Many in my neighborhood have already lost theirs. I had one tree guy say the whole treatment deal was a hoax... which I didn't really believe. But what he did recommend was a spring and fall dose of miracle grow. So I've done that the last few years and I am becoming a believer. Basically a bottle of liquid miracle grow diluted in a 5 gallon bucket of water and pour it all at the base of the tree. Simple as that. Could just be dumb luck but the tree still has fresh growth and no dead spots. Been much cheaper than the injection. I tell myself I am giving the tree its vitamins
My parents, who live in central Iowa, have been treating there ash for a while now and it's doing great. Lots of other ash in their town didn't make it. Every couple of years it gets a new treatment and I want to say its in the neighborhood of $400, but can't be sure about that. The arborist placed a metal tag in the tree for tracking purposes. Dad figured the cost to take it down would pay for a lot of years of treatment and he loves the tree so it's worth it to him.
My parents have used the Bayer treatment you can buy at Menards or Walmart. It costs about $25 a tree and all theirs are OK. Mine that was young and untreated started dying this year. Most Ash trees around me are already dead. Will see if their pour around the base of tree treatment continues to work.
We have an arborist treat a large ash in our backyard every 2 years. Most in our area (western Des Moines suburbs) are dead now. It feels like if you start before they get to the tree you’ll have good results. At some point I’ll start to spread out the treatments, probably one more on the 2 year cycle then move to every 3 years and eventually every 5 or stop completely. They have to run out of trees eventually.
Replacement tree suggestions by zone.
blog.davey.com
If planting more than one tree (or more), planting several varieties is a good tip. Reading the "pros & cons" of the tree variety is another.
I would be partial to at least one oak, hickory, and maple (staying away from silver maple (grows fast but is brittle). I think I'd like to plant some Ginko trees, if I needed to plant some more. They are pretty cool in some metro areas around Kansas City. I like the Hackberry tree but some don't recommend it. I like 'em because we have quite a few in our woods. Nice tree. Consider planting a walnut tree or two, also, but read up on them first.
RIP ash.
Best Trees to Replace Ash (Ash Tree Alternatives by Zone) | Davey Tree
If you removed an ash because of emerald ash borer, plant an ash tree replacement species. Discover the best ash tree alternatives to replace ash trees.
I would be partial to at least one oak, hickory, and maple (staying away from silver maple (grows fast but is brittle). I think I'd like to plant some Ginko trees, if I needed to plant some more. They are pretty cool in some metro areas around Kansas City. I like the Hackberry tree but some don't recommend it. I like 'em because we have quite a few in our woods. Nice tree. Consider planting a walnut tree or two, also, but read up on them first.
RIP ash.
I would recommend removing now and getting a replacement tree going. Gets you a head start since the old one is a goner. Just my opinion.
People trying to treat trees themselves should look at a chemical called Gaucho or Senator. It is an insecticide seed treatment that is same as any tree treatment. Can treat a tree for about $5/tree. There are so many chemicals that a farmer can get way cheaper than the average person if you know what you’re looking for.
EAB is here to stay, but they are working to fight it.
Emerald Ash Borer is here to stay. These researchers are working to control the population and protect ecosystems.
Emerald Ash Borer has decimated ash tree population in the U.S. since the early 2000s.The invasive species has slowly been making its way north in Wisconsin and Michigan.Researchers with the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station are working to get the species under control while also...
Ash likely to survive, with gradual resistance.
Some (most) of the insecticides require a license to buy and use. New insects in California are attacking Oak trees. DOT worker told me some of the oak trees along the roads were dying in Iowa. Pretty soon all that will survive are Red Cedar and Mulberry.
Somewhere is/was a mutant ash tree with the right genetic mutation to be immune to the Emerald Ash Borer. It is/was the tree that would save the species. I hope it hasn't already been removed as part of the "proactive" culling of Ash trees.
My understanding is that if your dead tree should fall or get blown over in a storm and cause damage, most insurance policies will not cover the damage since the tree was dead. I always think about this when I see giant dead ash trees in people's yards.
I've thought of this too when I drive around town and there are some rather large ones I've noticed dead for a few years now. I get it, paying to have a tree that size removed sucks but eventually it will decay enough you are going to have bigger issues if that tree falls. I think they are a bit of an eye sore too. I'm lucky that my dying ash is still small enough that I can probably find a buddy with a chainsaw to cut it up then either pay the city about $50 to haul it off or we cut it up enough to haul a few truck loads off ourselves. My neighbor is the rental manager for a place with outdoor equipment and probably could bring a chipper and stump grinder home some night too
I was surprised at just how many ash trees there were in Ames until they almost all died two (?) years ago. We had three big ash trees around our house, with many more in the neighborhood. When we first moved in eight years ago, we lost one tree in the back that shaded the house to a freak thunderstorm. Snapped the "y" shaped tree in two and hit the side of the house (minimal damage), so we had that removed. Then the derecho hit and took out much of the neighbor's HUGE ash tree that shaded our front yard, so that was removed. Then the ash borer finally came roaring through and one spring, our remaining ash only produced leaves around the lower trunk. Everything else was dead, as were all the other ash trees we could see from our house. So we had that one taken out, too.
Have heard of people treating some trees, but have no idea if those treatments were long-term solutions or not. This was years ago and those trees are all gone now, so I'm guessing either the treatment wasn't effective for the long haul or the bug adapted. Either way, sad to lose so many all at once around here.
Have heard of people treating some trees, but have no idea if those treatments were long-term solutions or not. This was years ago and those trees are all gone now, so I'm guessing either the treatment wasn't effective for the long haul or the bug adapted. Either way, sad to lose so many all at once around here.
We have at least two elm trees in my town. I would think someone could make a lot of money, cloning these native trees.
My top choices for No. Iowa / So. Minn would be:Replacement tree suggestions by zone.
If planting more than one tree (or more), planting several varieties is a good tip. Reading the "pros & cons" of the tree variety is another.Best Trees to Replace Ash (Ash Tree Alternatives by Zone) | Davey Tree
If you removed an ash because of emerald ash borer, plant an ash tree replacement species. Discover the best ash tree alternatives to replace ash trees.
I would be partial to at least one oak, hickory, and maple (staying away from silver maple (grows fast but is brittle). I think I'd like to plant some Ginko trees, if I needed to plant some more. They are pretty cool in some metro areas around Kansas City. I like the Hackberry tree but some don't recommend it. I like 'em because we have quite a few in our woods. Nice tree. Consider planting a walnut tree or two, also, but read up on them first.
RIP ash.
1 hackberry - indestructible, great yard tree
2 tuliptree - very fast growing, gorgeous, but only marginally hardy here in zone 4b
3 sugar/black maple - casts heavy shade so keep 'em pruned up as they grow
4 quaking aspen - fast growing, pretty, quaking sound is nice next to hammock
5 kentucky coffeetree - indestructible, interesting form
6 bitternut hickory - slow growing, but long-lived and solid yellow in fall
7 oak - swamp white oak and chestnut oak aren't too large or too messy
8 conifers - concolor fir, douglas fir, European larch, ponderosa pine
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From my own experience, it’s a matter of time. The green Chinese bugs will win.
Cut them down. They're toast. Plant some oak or maples to replace. I've lost six big ash trees and I was treating them for the last five years.
Did they appear to be healthy when you started treating them? Did you use the injection treatment?
