Let's talk about Plant Pests

Are you part of a garden club, environmental group, or other organization that wants to learn more about the invasive insect pests, plant pathogens and weeds that threaten our state? The Massachusetts Introduced Pests Outreach Project offers free lectures and training sessions covering everything from the Asian longhorned beetle to pathogens like sudden oak death, to invasive plants like mile-a-minute vine.

Because there is no charge for these sessions, they are restricted to groups of 40 or more attendees. MIPOP can also provide your organization with educational materials like fact sheets, posters and informational videos. For more information, email Jennifer Forman Orth, the State Plant Pest Survey Coordinator for Massachusetts, at jennifer.forman-orth@state.ma.us, or call 617-626-1735.

Get Compliance Training for ALB

If you have a business that could potentially be affected by the new Asian Longhorned Beetle regulations, you should make sure to sign up for one of the Compliance Training Sessions being held by the Massachusetts ALB Cooperative Eradication Program. The two-hour training and certification workshop will allow your business to enter into a compliance agreement and continue to operate within the regulated area.

Businesses that could be affected include any company performing work within the regulated area that results in the movement or transport of wood materials. Nurseries, landscapers, construction companies, tree removal services and firewood dealers are among the many businesses that have already received training. New sessions will be held 10/29/2008, 11/6/2008, 11/13/2008, and 11/20/2008. You can register online or call 508-799-8328 for more information.

Mile-a-Minute on Block Island

An infestation of mile-a-minute vine (Polygonum perfoliatum) was discovered last month on Block Island, located off the coast of Rhode Island. The initial sighting was in a swamp owned by The Nature Conservancy, in several patches covering more than 400 square meters. A small additional population was also found in the yard of an island resident. The Nature Conservancy and Rhode Island Natural History Survey staff were quick to assess the problem, and have already been out to the sight for a day-long "pulling session" to remove the thorny vines by hand. Given the extent of the invasion, RINHS staff expect that the mile-a-minute, which is an annual plant, has already put out a lot of seeds this season, meaning that RINHS and TNC will be back on the island next year for more pulling.

Massachusetts has two populations of mile-a-minute vine that are currently under eradication. If you think you have seen this plant, please report it using our online form, or call our Plant Pest Hotline at 617-626-1779.

Volunteers Wanted: Help Find ALB!

You help is needed this fall and winter in the search for the Asian longhorned beetle! The Greater Worcester Land Trust is enlisting volunteers to survey conservation land in the Worcester area for signs of the wood-boring invader. The initial goal of the GWLT is to cover a 150 acre parcel of conservation land, a mere 10% of the land that the trust is charged with protecting.

The survey crews meet every Thursday at noon to head out into the woods and look for signs of ALB damage. There is also a weekend event coming up soon for those of you who cannot make it during the work week. Any suspect trees are tagged and have their positions recorded by GPS. The information is then passed on to the ALB Cooperative Eradication Program for confirmation.

The GWLT is happy to train new volunteers on how to recognize the beetle, its host trees, and the damage it can cause. So far, the volunteers have had a pretty good track record at finding infested trees, but there is a lot of work left to do.

To sign up, contact the Greater Worcester Land Trust at 508-795-3838 or email anne@gwlt.org. You can read more about the GWLT's volunteer effort in this Worcester Telegram article.

Home Invaders

It's that time of year again: the growing season is almost over, temperatures are cooling off, and your home becomes a warm and inviting place...for insects.

One of these "home invaders" is the Western conifer seed bug (Leptoglossus occidentalis). This is a fairly large bug (about 3/4 inch long), with back legs that have a distinct flattened leaf-like shape, and alternating white and brown marks on its lower body, surrounding the wings (see photo). At this time of year, you may find one lurking around the foundation of your house, or buzzing around a window screen, looking at your home as a perfect shelter for the winter. If you have encountered this insect pest before, you probably remember it best by the acrid, citrusy-smelling liquid it emits when startled.

Western conifer seed bugs are native to the west coast of the USA, but have been established on the east coast since the 1990s. While they are only considered a minor pest of the coniferous trees they attack (pines, Douglas fir and hemlock), they can be a major inconvenience if they find a way to enter your home. Small infestations can be handled by sealing up any parts of your home that the bugs could be using to sneak in (holes in screens, chimneys, loose window fittings) and by capturing escapees by hand or by shop vac. Larger infestations may require consultation with a licensed pest specialist.

To learn more about the Western conifer seed bug, read this fact sheet from Cornell University's Insect Diagnostic Laboratory.

Buy Local, Burn Local

The Asian longhorned beetle, along with other wood-boring insects such as the emerald ash borer and the Sirex woodwasp, live the first part of their lives as white, worm-like larvae burrowed into the branches and trunks of trees. Because these larvae typically remain hidden until adulthood, when you transport firewood or cut branches you could be unknowingly transporting these invasive species with you.

This is one of the main reasons behind the order issued by the state to regulate the movement of wood products and live plants from the Asian longhorned beetle Regulated Area (Worcester and parts of Boylston, Holden, Shrewsbury and West Boylston). Since the infestation was first announced, Massachusetts has been working together with local and federal agencies to keep everyone informed. This includes compliance training for any business impacted by these regulations (from tree removal services to landscapers to firewood dealers), so that they can continue to do business while the eradication program gets underway.

The public remains our biggest and best weapon in the battle against the Asian longhorned beetle. Please take a few moments to familiarize yourself with this wood-boring invader using our fact sheet and photo gallery. And if you see something suspicious, in your firewood or elsewhere, you can use our online reporting system to describe the damage and upload photos. You can also call the Massachusetts ALB Eradication Program hotline at 1-866-702-9938.

ALB Info for Tree Care Professionals

The Massachusetts Tree Wardens & Foresters Association is holding a free Asian Longhorned Beetle Information Session for Tree Care Professionals later this month. The session, to be held in Waltham, MA on 10/22/08, from 1pm-4pm, will feature experts from the local, state, and national level of the Massachusetts ALB Eradication Program. Attendees can earn ISA, MCA, or Category 36 Pesticide CEU credits for attending. While this is a free event, space is limited, so pre-registration is recommended. For more details, visit the MTWFA website.

Biocontrol released in Michigan for emerald ash borer

Researchers from the USDA have added another tool to the arsenal against the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis, "EAB"). As reported in this article from E: The Environmental Magazine, three different wasp predators, all natural enemies of the EAB, are currently being reared and released into the wild to fight the tiny green invasive beetle. The release sites are all in Michigan, where ash trees have been under attack since the late 1990s.

The emerald ash borer has never been found in New England, but state agencies in Massachusetts remain on the lookout for this pest. To learn more about it, check out our EAB pest fact sheet. You can learn more about this and other pests of the Great Lakes region by visiting the Illinois CAPS blog.