Emerald Ash Borer Emergency

Did you know? Ash trees make up about 15% of Denver’s urban canopy, which is about 1.45 million trees! To keep these ash trees healthy, we need to take precautions against the emerald ash borer.

Keep in mind that the emerald ash borer is attracted to stressed ash trees, so routine maintenance is essential to prevent an infestation.

An ash tree can become stressed from many variables, such as drought, soil compaction, and root disease. Luckily, there are ways to protect your trees before they attract the emerald ash borer.

Ways to Protect Your Ash Tree

Protecting your ash tree from EAB requires routine maintenance, just as other trees do to remain healthy. This maintenance can include regular pruning, fertilizing, and watering. We even have a treatment to protect your trees against this invasive pest.

The last two are especially important here in Denver, where our soils don’t provide enough nutrients for tree growth. And while water may seem like an easy go-to, trees don’t retain water very well here. Our high elevation means more water evaporates rather than getting absorbed into the soil.

How to Identify EAB

emerald ash borer

The emerald ash borer burrows into ash trees, so you may not see them until symptoms on your ash tree begin to show up. But if you keep a close eye out, they do have distinct features.

An adult beetle is dark metallic green and only about half an inch long. Meanwhile, the larvae are more pale in color, with an elongated body and slightly flattened head. Though small, these borers can do a lot of damage.

Identifying the symptoms these pests do is a little easier.

You’ll start to notice branches without leaves toward the top of your ash tree, but new growth that looks like wild, leafy branches will start to sprout from the trunk.

Another common symptom is vertical splits in the bark that expose S-shaped tunnels combined with D-shaped exit holes along the trunk. This is how the borers travel within the tree.

The way they kill the tree is by feeding under the bark, which cuts off the natural flow of water and nutrients. And, if not treated in a timely manner, can cause the death of your ash tree. However, if caught in time, there are treatments to save the tree.

Our Emerald Ash Borer Services

One option we have for treatment is an annual ash borer spray. This is a soil drench done in early spring right before the hatching season for these pests, this way, the larvae die as soon as they try to eat. Please note that this treatment is usually for smaller trees.

For bigger trees, we opt for a trunk injection every other year. This injection is done right after the trees have leafed out. The warmer weather allows the treatment to spread more easily through the entirety of the tree.

These services are able to protect against the emerald ash borer and can also act as a preventative measure. However, if the tree is too far gone, it will need to be removed before the borers can spread to more ash trees.

Our certified arborists can give you a free estimate to determine what sort of treatment your ash needs. We’ll take a look at the canopy and if there’s more than 35% of canopy death, we’ll recommend a tree removal so you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars just trying to save the tree only to lose it anyway.
If you have any other questions regarding the emerald ash borer, don’t hesitate to check out our website for more information or give us a call at (303) 806-8733 to request a free estimate for us to inspect your ash tree. We’ll come up with a treatment plan to keep your trees healthy and safe.



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