Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
North Carolina recently joined a club it would rather not be a member of. The state became the 20th in the country to confirm the presence of the emerald ash borer. The N.C. Forest Service and NCDA&CS Plant Industry Division recently found the beetle in trees in Granville, Person and Vance counties.
Last week, Commissioner Troxler signed an emergency quarantine order restricting the movement of hardwood firewood, ash nursery stock and other ash materials from these three counties. The quarantine applies to all hardwood firewood and plants and plant parts of the ash tree – including living, dead, cut, fallen, green lumber, stumps, roots, branches and chips.
The emerald ash borer has killed or harmed tens of millions of trees across the United States since it was first found in Michigan in 2002. Over the past 11 years, the beetle has spread to numerous other states, including Virginia and Tennessee. The pest’s appearance in North Carolina wasn’t shocking.
This pest can affect any of the four types of ash tree grown in North Carolina. Symptoms include a general decline in the appearance of the tree, such as thinning from the top down and loss of leaves. Increased woodpecker activity is another symptom.
If you think you may have emerald ash borer in your trees, call the Plant Industry Division toll free at 1-800-206-9333.
Click on the audio player below to listen to Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss the detection of the emerald ash borer in North Carolina. To learn more about this destructive pest, click here.
[Audio:http://info.ncagr.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/Troxler_6-25.mp3|titles=Today’s Topic for June 25]
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