More foreigners causing problems!

CONCORD, N.H. —An invasive species of insect that eats and kills ash trees has turned up in New Hampshire.


The New Hampshire Department of Agriculture said it found larvae of the emerald ash borer beetle in a tree in Concord.

The beetle has been moving eastward for years, most recently turning up in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

The state has been preparing for the arrival of this beetle for some time now, but now that it's here -- little if anything can be done to stop it.

The clock is running out on New Hampshire's ash trees.

"The Emerald Ash Borer is probably the most destructive forest insect that we have in the country, on the continent currently. It's an invasive species from Asia, and it's been spreading from state to state," said Lorraine Merrill, commissioner of N.H. Dept. Of Agriculture.

The beetle can destroy and ash tree in 3 to 5 years and has already killed millions of trees in the midwest. The state will be surveying trees in Concord to determine the scope of the infestation.

"We have a plan that we are beginning to implement, and there will be information coming out for homeowners and municipalities," said Merrill.

Ash trees make up about 6 percent of the state's forests, but with the beetle setting up camp, experts said that figure will begin to drop.

"From the parts of the country and Canada it has affected so far, it devastates the Ash population very quickly," said Rob Farquhar, general manager of Brochu Nurseries.

Farquhar said the beetle tends to stay in the canopy of the ash tree, making it hard to spot.

"I doubt the regular homeowner is going to be cognizant of it until it's too late," said Farquhar.

Anticipating the beetle's advance, Brochu began phasing out ash production four years ago. More established specimens, like the majestic ash tree on the statehouse lawn, won't be so lucky. Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan is a forester and said the emerald border is bad news for New Hampshire.

"Each tree species that grows in our forests is an important component of our forests. They all serve a purpose, and to lose one of them really has a big impact," said Scanlan.

The presence of this beetle triggers a federal quarantine on certain ash wood products, but the commissioner of agriculture said its too soon to determine what the scope of that quarantine will be.

Read more: http://www.wmur.com/news/nh-news/Invasive-species-spotted-in-NH/-/9857858/19643428/-/format/rsss_2.0/-/xoh7o9/-/index.html#ixzz2PgoVB7Mu

LOL, "foreigners"!!! I read about that. Our poor ash trees.

Deputy Secretary of State David Scanlan is a forester and said the emerald border is bad news for New Hampshire.

It appears WMUR has a good spell-check capability: editing—not so much.

This country lost the "spreading" Chestnut tree a hundred years ago, and the Elm tree about 50 years ago. It's only taken a century to develop a "resistant" Chestnut tree.

WHL wrote:LOL, "foreigners"!!! I read about that. Our poor ash trees.

Six percent of New Hampshire's forests are ash trees—and by this, I think they mean the Northern Ash tree. (Which grow into huge and solid trees, and are one of the "better" trees for firewood). Other states and Canada should have selected Ash trees for cutting down for firewood to stall this spread until countermeasures could be devised against this beetle. Birch, Maple, and other hardwood tree species are in existential distress, but at least we still have White Pine trees.

It's New Hampshire's trees that distinguish New Hampshire from Massachusetts—IMHO, "foreigners" isn't too strong a word.

I own a property that has a lot of ash on it.

WHL wrote:I own a property that has a lot of ash on it.

You'll need to have a "fire [wood] sale"—eventually.

Ash to ash, watch for the dust.

I hope not!