Warning issued about destructive tree beetle – New Jersey 101.5

Experts have been encouraging residents and municipal officials from several towns to go to the emeraldashborer.nj.gov and learn the best methods to protect the ash trees from the emerald ash borer, and how to deal with dying trees.

Some plants located in Haddonfield. are reportedly infected with the tree-killing insect, according to a list released by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture. “It is important to take urgent action to preserve our ash trees”, explained Mayor Georges Bourelle. Traps were set in ash trees to track the spreading of the invasive pest in 27 towns from Burlington County, eight towns in Hunterdon County, three Camden County towns, and more.

“Emerald ash borer is a fast-moving, highly destructive, invasive pest, which could lead to the death of ash trees”, said New Jersey Secretary of Agriculture Douglas H. First discovered in New Jersey in May of 2014, emerald ash borer infestations have been spreading like wildfire all about the USA, reaching north into Canada.

Reminding of a termite, the emerald ash borer (or EABf or short) is a pretty, little metallic-green beetle.

EAB first turned up in Somerset County in May 2014. The beetles are now present in 25 USA states and two Canadian provinces, according to the Department of Agriculture report.

D-shaped holes in the ash tree’s bark about 1/8 of an inch in size.

The beetle lays eggs on the bark of ash trees. As they feed and develop, they cut off the flow of nutrients and eventually kill the tree.

The site also gives towns an Emerald Ash Borer Management Plan template and a tree removal cost calculator.

Meanwhile, Rutgers is helping municipalities survey the number of ash trees so they can adopt a management plan that combines cutting and treatment because the state is included in the federal quarantine area.

The Department of Agriculture recommends not moving any firewood during the infestation and also suggests that residents of affected towns burn all wood that is purchased.

Signs of the beetle can be reported to the state Department of Agriculture at 609-406-6939.