Scroll down the page to learn the Answers to the following Emerald Ash Borer FAQ:
1) Does my Ash tree(s) have Emerald Ash Borer? At what point should I have it
treated?
2) If my Ash tree(s) is already infested, can treatment save it?
3) When is the best time of year to treat my Ash tree?
4) What is the difference between the 1 year and the 2 year treatment types?
5) How does Emerald Ash Borer actually kill the Ash trees?
6) Am I in an “infested” area?
7) What is the realistic long term effect that Emerald Ash Borer will have on
Indianapolis and surrounding areas?
8) How does the trunk injection treatment system work? 9) Treatment vs. Removal
10) Why is IndyAsh so much less expensive than other companies, especially for larger projects?
11) What if the treatment does not work?
12) How does EAB spread?
treated?
2) If my Ash tree(s) is already infested, can treatment save it?
3) When is the best time of year to treat my Ash tree?
4) What is the difference between the 1 year and the 2 year treatment types?
5) How does Emerald Ash Borer actually kill the Ash trees?
6) Am I in an “infested” area?
7) What is the realistic long term effect that Emerald Ash Borer will have on
Indianapolis and surrounding areas?
8) How does the trunk injection treatment system work? 9) Treatment vs. Removal
10) Why is IndyAsh so much less expensive than other companies, especially for larger projects?
11) What if the treatment does not work?
12) How does EAB spread?
1) Does my Ash tree(s) have Emerald Ash Borer(EAB)? At what point should I have it treated?
Emerald Ash Borer is a sneaky and difficult insect to identify. 90% of its life cycle occurs within the tree.
This wood boring beetle typically begins its invasion of the tree at the top, where the more vigorous photosynthesis and rich nutrient content is located. This makes it very hard to “spot” or see whether the beetle has entered your tree.
Often, it takes between 2 – 3 years of infestation before your tree begins to show signs of damage or struggle. From the initial signs of struggle, it is only a short matter of time before your tree is beyond the help of treatment. Signs and symptoms show in the following order:
a. (1 – 2 years into infestation)Upper canopy begins to thin, leaves show signs of under-development due to lack of receiving water and nutrient supply. Emerald Ash Borer destroys the vascular structure that is responsible for delivering the water and nutrients to the canopy.
This stage is more subtle, and not easily noticed by the average individual. Trained tree professionals should be able to identify with no problem
b. (2 – 3 years into infestation) Increased wood pecker activity. Emerald Ash Borer is a great food source for wood peckers, currently, other than us, Emerald Ash Borer does not have any native predators to keep their populations in check other than the wood peckers.
c. (1 – 2 years into infestation) Early Summer/Fall Leaf Loss – This is a stress related condition. If Emerald Ash Borer is eating the vascular system of the tree, this will obviously cause stress to the tree.
When a tree is stressed, it cannot focus its attention on its normal functions, the canopy does not receive proper food/nutrients, and typically a result is a yellowing/browning of leaves and premature leaf loss.
d. (2 – 3 years into infestation) Epicormic Shoots (aka. sucker growth) begins to grow out of the major crotches, branches and sometimes in more severe cases, at the base of the trunk.
Knowing it is damaged and may not survive, the tree begins producing new “replacement” trees. Beyond this point, the success of treatment becomes questionable.
e. (2 – 4 years into infestation) Branch and section die off – We cannot save what is already dead. Once a section of a tree has mortal damage from Emerald Ash Borer, it cannot be brought back.
At this point trees begin to move into a state that is questionable that treatment can be effective. Trees in this state, even if saved, will often be abstract and no longer have full structural integrity, and thus become unstable or dangerous trees with the potential of falling apart.
Some trees will fall into what we call the “Experimental” category or special conditions, where we believe or you the client is willing to take the risk to treat a tree in order to see what the outcome will be. At the end of the first 2 year period of treatment, it will be clear whether the tree will make it and whether to continue treatments or not.
Most trees that show major dieback should be removed.
2) If my Ash tree(s) is already infested, can treatment help and save it?
Yes in many cases it can. The parts of the tree that are still receiving water from the root system will also receive the treatment solution when we inject the tree. Any area that the treatment solution reaches will kill off an active infestation in that area. Once the beetles are killed, stopping further damage, then the tree can begin its’ repair process.
If a section of the tree is completely dead before treatment begins, there is nothing that can be done to bring it back. If more than ½ of your tree is already dead, then it is recommended to hire a professional to have your tree(s) removed.
3) When is the best time of year to treat my Ash tree(s)?
Working with the 2 year treatment solution that we use (Emamectin Benzoate), we can treat your tree just about any time of the year that the tree is actively moving water from the root system to the canopy (called transpiration).
The exceptions to this rule are in extreme weather conditions such as the peak heat of summer, flooding and heavy over-saturation, severe drought, and extreme cold winter conditions.
Please be aware that there are other treatment solutions on the market that typically only carry a 1 year residual. Most of these chemicals have to be applied at a very specific time of the year (April 15th – May 15th for them to have any significant protective effect for your tree.
4) What is the difference between the 1 year and the 2 year treatment types?
- 2 Year Solution:
The 2 year treatment is by far the most productive, aggressive, and effective treatment solution on the market. The active ingredient is called Emamectin Benzoate and it is injected through the bark/trunk directly into the vascular system of the tree, like an IV you would receive at the hospital.
This 2 year solution is effective in both preventative situations as well as taking care of trees that are already infested.
This 2 year solution can be used to treat your tree just about any time of the year that the tree is actively moving water from the root system to the canopy (March 15th - Ju;y 1st & August 20th – October 15th ). The exceptions to this rule are in extreme stress conditions such as the peak heat of summer, flooding and heavy over-saturation, severe drought, and extreme cold winter conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 1 Year Treatment Solutions:
The 1 year solutions on the market go by a wide variety of product names, however the active ingredient chemical names are Imidicloprid and Dinotefuran. Research shows that these products provide decent protection on smaller trees less than 20 inches in diameter. Research has shown that these products do not hold up very well in high infestation areas.
The “drawback” and major limitation with these chemicals is the fact that they are only effective when they are Properly applied between April 1st – May 15th .
The 1 year solutions are an acceptable for smaller trees in low pest infestation areas, however for larger trees and as pest population and infestation increases, the 2 year Emamectin Benzoate treatment is the only solution that research has found to provide consistent and effective results.
5) How does Emerald Ash Borer kill the Ash trees?
The Emerald Ash Borer feeds on the vascular tissue of the tree, which is responsible for carrying the water and nutrients from the roots underground up to and throughout the canopy of the tree to keep the branches and leaves feed and watered. As damage increases to the vascular tissue from EAB feeding, less and less of the tree receives the vital elements that it needs for its survival, and within a relatively short time (1 – 3 years) from the time that you notice the first signs, without treatment, the tree will be dead.
The vascular tissue is just behind the bark. If you look at a cross section of a log, this will typically be the last few “Growth rings” that can be seen just behind the bark. The thing that makes identification of infestation difficult, is that the EAB can feed within a tree one, two, even sometimes three years, before it causes enough damage that a tree begins to show the signs of infestation. – The problem here is, that once this much damage has occurred within the tree, treatment cannot always restore a tree to health. The bottom line, if you are in an area of known EAB infestation and your tree still currently looks good and healthy, begin treatments immediately if you would like to save and maintain the health of your Ash trees.
6) Am I in an “infested” area?
By definition, an infested area is any area within 15 miles of a known EAB population.
There is no place in Marion or Hamilton County that is outside of this definition. So as of right now Marion and Hamilton counties are considered by definition – high infestation areas, and the EAB population are only going to continue growing and spreading through the area.
7) What is the realistic long term effect that Emerald Ash Borer will have on Indianapolis and surrounding areas?
Ash trees represent approx 30% of the tree canopy in the area. The realistic future, stated by the researchers at Purdue University, is that every un-treated Ash tree in the area will be dead. The majority of our Ash trees will be killed and in need of removal within the next 8 - 12 years.
The loss of these trees will have a dramatic effect on our local biosphere as well as being financially costly to the private properties throughout the area
EAB only feeds on Ash trees. Once the Ash population is wiped out, then so will the Emerald Ash Borer population. Research shows that it will only take approx 8 - 12 years, once an active infestation has been found, for the EAB to kill all of the Ash trees in the surrounding area.
8) How does the trunk injection treatment system work?
It is a very similar concept to an IV that you would receive at the hospital, the only difference being, that the tree will receive anywhere from 3 - 20 needles at one time depending on its size.
- 1st We drill small holes into the lower areas of your tree trunk approx 6 – 8 inches apart.
- 2nd We install an intelligently designed plug that seals the hole to keep disease and other pests from entering, as well as keeping the treatment solution from
leaking out.
- 3rd Treatment solution is filled into the IV bottles that have tubes with needles in the end. The IV bottles are placed under a light pressure of approx 30 - 40lbs.
- 4th The needles are inserted into the plugs that have been placed in the tree trunk, the valves in the needles are turned on and the combination of the natural
flow of water through the tree as well as the additional support of the pressurization, allows the treatment solution to flow into the trees’ vascular system.
- 5th Once the solution is in the tree, which will take anywhere from 5 to 90 minutes (depending on the current rate of water flowing within the tree, the tree will
naturally distribute the solution throughout its own canopy.
Once the solution reaches an area, it kills any active infestation that may have been in the tree, stopping any further damage from occurring and allowing the tree to begin its’ recovery process.
9) Treatment vs. Removal
One way or another, the Ash trees are going to cost money whether it’s in treating or in removing them.
On average, our treatment is very similar or even less expensive than the cost of removal in the long run. Not only is the treatment often same or less, but the biggest gain is that you get to keep your mature Ash tree.
With smaller trees, often treatment is more expensive than removal. So unless you have a really good reason for keeping a tree, it is recommended to save yourself the long term headache/cost, and go ahead and remove the smaller tree(s) now and replace them with a different ideal species.
** For trees you do not treat, it is recommended that you move forward with removal as soon as possible. An untreated Ash tree is a breeding ground for increasing Emerald Ash Borer populations.
10) Why is IndyAsh less expensive than other companies, especially for larger projects?
We are a local, family owned company that specializes in only Emerald Ash Borer research and treatment solutions. We have a much lower overhead than many other “Full Service” tree care companies and we pass the savings along to you.
Also, with Emerald Ash Borer being our only focus, it allows us the ability to be specialized and offer you some of the most knowledgeable professionals on the Emerald Ash Borer subject in the area.
We have been researching and focused on Emerald Ash Borer since 2007 and have successfully treated over 2,000 Ash trees in the Indianapolis and surrounding areas.
11) What if the treatment does not work?
We assess every tree before we recommend treatment and we re-assess the tree before we actually treat it. Based on our assessments, we have not seen a healthy-treated tree become infested. And we only recommend treatment on the trees we feel confidently have a good chance of benefiting from the treatment
If there are trees that are in questionable health, we communicate this clearly with you. In some cases, we decide with you, to go ahead and treat a questionable tree.
We call these circumstances – “Experimental Treatments”. The worst case scenario in these situations is that by the end of the first 2 year period of treatment, it will be clear whether it is worth continuing treatments or to simple remove the tree.
12) How does EAB spread?
Emerald Ash Borer can fly, but its’ range is limited to more of a 3 – 5 mile range naturally per year. The biggest spread is through man-made means, mostly being through the movement of firewood.
In the past it was also through nurseries shipping live trees that were infested from state to state, however at this point, there are no nurseries in North America legally growing, possessing, or shipping Ash trees anywhere anymore.
The biggest spread naturally of Emerald Ash Borer is the rate at which it re-populates. Each female Emerald Ash Borer is capable of producing 90 offspring EAB each year. So to give an example… if a couple of Emerald Ash Borers make it into an area, let’s say through movement of firewood, they would produce 90 more EAB in the Spring, the following year the population would increase to around 4,000, then the following year the population would increase to around 180,000, then the following year the population would increase to around 8,100,000….. and at this kind of population density, the Emerald Ash Borers are “forced” to spread out, to find more food so that they do not saturate an area.
Emerald Ash Borer is a sneaky and difficult insect to identify. 90% of its life cycle occurs within the tree.
This wood boring beetle typically begins its invasion of the tree at the top, where the more vigorous photosynthesis and rich nutrient content is located. This makes it very hard to “spot” or see whether the beetle has entered your tree.
Often, it takes between 2 – 3 years of infestation before your tree begins to show signs of damage or struggle. From the initial signs of struggle, it is only a short matter of time before your tree is beyond the help of treatment. Signs and symptoms show in the following order:
a. (1 – 2 years into infestation)Upper canopy begins to thin, leaves show signs of under-development due to lack of receiving water and nutrient supply. Emerald Ash Borer destroys the vascular structure that is responsible for delivering the water and nutrients to the canopy.
This stage is more subtle, and not easily noticed by the average individual. Trained tree professionals should be able to identify with no problem
b. (2 – 3 years into infestation) Increased wood pecker activity. Emerald Ash Borer is a great food source for wood peckers, currently, other than us, Emerald Ash Borer does not have any native predators to keep their populations in check other than the wood peckers.
c. (1 – 2 years into infestation) Early Summer/Fall Leaf Loss – This is a stress related condition. If Emerald Ash Borer is eating the vascular system of the tree, this will obviously cause stress to the tree.
When a tree is stressed, it cannot focus its attention on its normal functions, the canopy does not receive proper food/nutrients, and typically a result is a yellowing/browning of leaves and premature leaf loss.
d. (2 – 3 years into infestation) Epicormic Shoots (aka. sucker growth) begins to grow out of the major crotches, branches and sometimes in more severe cases, at the base of the trunk.
Knowing it is damaged and may not survive, the tree begins producing new “replacement” trees. Beyond this point, the success of treatment becomes questionable.
e. (2 – 4 years into infestation) Branch and section die off – We cannot save what is already dead. Once a section of a tree has mortal damage from Emerald Ash Borer, it cannot be brought back.
At this point trees begin to move into a state that is questionable that treatment can be effective. Trees in this state, even if saved, will often be abstract and no longer have full structural integrity, and thus become unstable or dangerous trees with the potential of falling apart.
Some trees will fall into what we call the “Experimental” category or special conditions, where we believe or you the client is willing to take the risk to treat a tree in order to see what the outcome will be. At the end of the first 2 year period of treatment, it will be clear whether the tree will make it and whether to continue treatments or not.
Most trees that show major dieback should be removed.
2) If my Ash tree(s) is already infested, can treatment help and save it?
Yes in many cases it can. The parts of the tree that are still receiving water from the root system will also receive the treatment solution when we inject the tree. Any area that the treatment solution reaches will kill off an active infestation in that area. Once the beetles are killed, stopping further damage, then the tree can begin its’ repair process.
If a section of the tree is completely dead before treatment begins, there is nothing that can be done to bring it back. If more than ½ of your tree is already dead, then it is recommended to hire a professional to have your tree(s) removed.
3) When is the best time of year to treat my Ash tree(s)?
Working with the 2 year treatment solution that we use (Emamectin Benzoate), we can treat your tree just about any time of the year that the tree is actively moving water from the root system to the canopy (called transpiration).
The exceptions to this rule are in extreme weather conditions such as the peak heat of summer, flooding and heavy over-saturation, severe drought, and extreme cold winter conditions.
Please be aware that there are other treatment solutions on the market that typically only carry a 1 year residual. Most of these chemicals have to be applied at a very specific time of the year (April 15th – May 15th for them to have any significant protective effect for your tree.
4) What is the difference between the 1 year and the 2 year treatment types?
- 2 Year Solution:
The 2 year treatment is by far the most productive, aggressive, and effective treatment solution on the market. The active ingredient is called Emamectin Benzoate and it is injected through the bark/trunk directly into the vascular system of the tree, like an IV you would receive at the hospital.
This 2 year solution is effective in both preventative situations as well as taking care of trees that are already infested.
This 2 year solution can be used to treat your tree just about any time of the year that the tree is actively moving water from the root system to the canopy (March 15th - Ju;y 1st & August 20th – October 15th ). The exceptions to this rule are in extreme stress conditions such as the peak heat of summer, flooding and heavy over-saturation, severe drought, and extreme cold winter conditions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 1 Year Treatment Solutions:
The 1 year solutions on the market go by a wide variety of product names, however the active ingredient chemical names are Imidicloprid and Dinotefuran. Research shows that these products provide decent protection on smaller trees less than 20 inches in diameter. Research has shown that these products do not hold up very well in high infestation areas.
The “drawback” and major limitation with these chemicals is the fact that they are only effective when they are Properly applied between April 1st – May 15th .
The 1 year solutions are an acceptable for smaller trees in low pest infestation areas, however for larger trees and as pest population and infestation increases, the 2 year Emamectin Benzoate treatment is the only solution that research has found to provide consistent and effective results.
5) How does Emerald Ash Borer kill the Ash trees?
The Emerald Ash Borer feeds on the vascular tissue of the tree, which is responsible for carrying the water and nutrients from the roots underground up to and throughout the canopy of the tree to keep the branches and leaves feed and watered. As damage increases to the vascular tissue from EAB feeding, less and less of the tree receives the vital elements that it needs for its survival, and within a relatively short time (1 – 3 years) from the time that you notice the first signs, without treatment, the tree will be dead.
The vascular tissue is just behind the bark. If you look at a cross section of a log, this will typically be the last few “Growth rings” that can be seen just behind the bark. The thing that makes identification of infestation difficult, is that the EAB can feed within a tree one, two, even sometimes three years, before it causes enough damage that a tree begins to show the signs of infestation. – The problem here is, that once this much damage has occurred within the tree, treatment cannot always restore a tree to health. The bottom line, if you are in an area of known EAB infestation and your tree still currently looks good and healthy, begin treatments immediately if you would like to save and maintain the health of your Ash trees.
6) Am I in an “infested” area?
By definition, an infested area is any area within 15 miles of a known EAB population.
There is no place in Marion or Hamilton County that is outside of this definition. So as of right now Marion and Hamilton counties are considered by definition – high infestation areas, and the EAB population are only going to continue growing and spreading through the area.
7) What is the realistic long term effect that Emerald Ash Borer will have on Indianapolis and surrounding areas?
Ash trees represent approx 30% of the tree canopy in the area. The realistic future, stated by the researchers at Purdue University, is that every un-treated Ash tree in the area will be dead. The majority of our Ash trees will be killed and in need of removal within the next 8 - 12 years.
The loss of these trees will have a dramatic effect on our local biosphere as well as being financially costly to the private properties throughout the area
EAB only feeds on Ash trees. Once the Ash population is wiped out, then so will the Emerald Ash Borer population. Research shows that it will only take approx 8 - 12 years, once an active infestation has been found, for the EAB to kill all of the Ash trees in the surrounding area.
8) How does the trunk injection treatment system work?
It is a very similar concept to an IV that you would receive at the hospital, the only difference being, that the tree will receive anywhere from 3 - 20 needles at one time depending on its size.
- 1st We drill small holes into the lower areas of your tree trunk approx 6 – 8 inches apart.
- 2nd We install an intelligently designed plug that seals the hole to keep disease and other pests from entering, as well as keeping the treatment solution from
leaking out.
- 3rd Treatment solution is filled into the IV bottles that have tubes with needles in the end. The IV bottles are placed under a light pressure of approx 30 - 40lbs.
- 4th The needles are inserted into the plugs that have been placed in the tree trunk, the valves in the needles are turned on and the combination of the natural
flow of water through the tree as well as the additional support of the pressurization, allows the treatment solution to flow into the trees’ vascular system.
- 5th Once the solution is in the tree, which will take anywhere from 5 to 90 minutes (depending on the current rate of water flowing within the tree, the tree will
naturally distribute the solution throughout its own canopy.
Once the solution reaches an area, it kills any active infestation that may have been in the tree, stopping any further damage from occurring and allowing the tree to begin its’ recovery process.
9) Treatment vs. Removal
One way or another, the Ash trees are going to cost money whether it’s in treating or in removing them.
On average, our treatment is very similar or even less expensive than the cost of removal in the long run. Not only is the treatment often same or less, but the biggest gain is that you get to keep your mature Ash tree.
With smaller trees, often treatment is more expensive than removal. So unless you have a really good reason for keeping a tree, it is recommended to save yourself the long term headache/cost, and go ahead and remove the smaller tree(s) now and replace them with a different ideal species.
** For trees you do not treat, it is recommended that you move forward with removal as soon as possible. An untreated Ash tree is a breeding ground for increasing Emerald Ash Borer populations.
10) Why is IndyAsh less expensive than other companies, especially for larger projects?
We are a local, family owned company that specializes in only Emerald Ash Borer research and treatment solutions. We have a much lower overhead than many other “Full Service” tree care companies and we pass the savings along to you.
Also, with Emerald Ash Borer being our only focus, it allows us the ability to be specialized and offer you some of the most knowledgeable professionals on the Emerald Ash Borer subject in the area.
We have been researching and focused on Emerald Ash Borer since 2007 and have successfully treated over 2,000 Ash trees in the Indianapolis and surrounding areas.
11) What if the treatment does not work?
We assess every tree before we recommend treatment and we re-assess the tree before we actually treat it. Based on our assessments, we have not seen a healthy-treated tree become infested. And we only recommend treatment on the trees we feel confidently have a good chance of benefiting from the treatment
If there are trees that are in questionable health, we communicate this clearly with you. In some cases, we decide with you, to go ahead and treat a questionable tree.
We call these circumstances – “Experimental Treatments”. The worst case scenario in these situations is that by the end of the first 2 year period of treatment, it will be clear whether it is worth continuing treatments or to simple remove the tree.
12) How does EAB spread?
Emerald Ash Borer can fly, but its’ range is limited to more of a 3 – 5 mile range naturally per year. The biggest spread is through man-made means, mostly being through the movement of firewood.
In the past it was also through nurseries shipping live trees that were infested from state to state, however at this point, there are no nurseries in North America legally growing, possessing, or shipping Ash trees anywhere anymore.
The biggest spread naturally of Emerald Ash Borer is the rate at which it re-populates. Each female Emerald Ash Borer is capable of producing 90 offspring EAB each year. So to give an example… if a couple of Emerald Ash Borers make it into an area, let’s say through movement of firewood, they would produce 90 more EAB in the Spring, the following year the population would increase to around 4,000, then the following year the population would increase to around 180,000, then the following year the population would increase to around 8,100,000….. and at this kind of population density, the Emerald Ash Borers are “forced” to spread out, to find more food so that they do not saturate an area.
