Guest authors: Courtney Smith and Kelly Oten, NCSU Extension As the weather gets warmer in North Carolina, it’s clear that summer is upon us. Many people enjoy what summer brings — the warm weather, vacations and relaxing by the pool! But did you know that you could also help save North Carolina’s trees while enjoying […]
Guest authors: Courtney Smith and Kelly Oten, NCSU Extension You won’t like the spotted lanternfly if you like to sit under the shade of trees, enjoy fruits such as apples, sip wine or work in the garden. The spotted lanternfly is an invasive insect from Asia that attacks numerous plants. It was first detected in […]
Guest authors: Courtney Smith and Kelly Oten, NCSU Extension Gorgeous, vibrant maple trees are a common sight in North Carolina. These trees are some of the first to show fall color, painting our landscape. They are the second most common tree in our forests, and maples are also a favorite street or landscape tree. If […]
While North Carolina has its fair share of invasive species already within the state, experts at the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services are also on the lookout for pests just outside of our borders. The Spotted Lanternfly is a particularly worrisome pest with heavy breeding populations in several nearby states, and NCDA&CS […]
When people think of “dangerous invasive pests,” fire ants might not necessarily come to mind. While many people view fire ants as a ubiquitous part of life, the pests have actually only been in North Carolina since the 1950’s, after being imported to the United States in the early 20th century. Since first being detected […]
It all started with a few errant caterpillars. In 1869, French entomologist Étienne Léopold Trouvelot brought the larvae of the Gypsy Moth across the sea intending to breed them with silkworms to create a silk industry in America. Instead, as the story goes, a storm led to several of the larvae being released from his […]
Seven years ago, the emerald ash borer was first found in North Carolina. Its discovery was met with dread. This invasive beetle had already become notorious by devastating the forests in the Midwest and Northeast. We knew it killed trees and spread quickly. The future was not bright for North Carolina’s ash trees. This is […]
An unwelcome sight has plagued our coastal forests for years now. Dead redbay trees line the roadways and mar our coastal forests in southeastern N.C. These trees are dead because of an invader—a non-native fungus carried from tree to tree by the invasive redbay ambrosia beetle. This fungus causes laurel wilt disease and infected redbays […]
Summer is often full of plans, but no one has been busier this year than the emerald ash borer. Although small, this invasive beetle is killing countless ash trees across the state. Since May, it has been confirmed in 11 additional counties within North Carolina, bringing the statewide total to 48 as of mid-July. Newly-infested […]
There are several strangers in a strange land here in North Carolina. In fact, the majority of our worst forest pests are non-native invasive species. In the 1990s, the tree-killing hemlock woolly adelgid was first found in N.C. and can now be found in every county in the state where hemlocks are native. Hemlock mortality […]
In 2012, thousand cankers disease was confirmed in North Carolina for the first time. The invasive disease, responsible for killing walnut trees in walnut groves in the western U.S. and as a new introduction to eastern Tennessee at the time, was a frightening prospect for the state. However, since that time, the disease or its […]
In 2013, the emerald ash borer made its debut in North Carolina. The devastation of forests north and northwest caused by this invasive beetle was already well-known, so its discovery was met with dread. The ash forests were dying, and quickly. The future did not look good for North Carolina’s ash trees. Over the next […]