I think most of us on here make it a habit to only cut dead or unhealthy trees. This is a pretty conscientious crowd. But good info. And, it’s a good word to spread.
Interesting how one has no damage. I'm no arborist but the thought that comes to my mind is you might have one that's EAB resistant, in which case the last thing you want to do is cut it down. Is the one without woodpecker damage still pushing out leaves in the growing season?
Yeah, they all have been producing normal foliage. I’ll take a pic tomorrow the three trees are kinda a cluster f.
Seems to me they can go a couple years infested, then the canopy starts dying back, then once you start seeing new shoots popping out at the base of the trunk you know that's the tree's last gasp at life. All the while the woodpeckers go nuts trying to get at the larvae inside. Too many larvae and not enough woodpeckers out there. I can't remember the last time I saw one in my area that still had a healthy canopy.
Yes, same here. I only cut dead ash. Unfortunately on my property, and all of the ash I've seen around here, they are all dead.
I guess I have been pretty lucky. We have quite a few Ash trees here and they have all seemed healthy. You know....until an ice storm wreaks havoc on them.
Don't worry, they have plenty of invasive species from here...the product of world trade and a major cause of loss of biodiversity around the planet
EAB in Maine is just beginning and it’s been watched closely and dreaded for a long time. We have a lot of white ash and a thriving basket making industry that could just go away completely. Native American people have been making baskets of all shapes and sizes for hundreds of years from ash. It’s a devastating loss for them. It’s one of their better sources of income.
I don't know if I mentioned this years ago or not, so here goes. As soon a local logger had found out about the EAB (years ago) he harvested ash from his lands. This was before the EAB affected market prices; I heard he did quite well.
I think i scrounged some ash from the dump last year that had no sign of EAB. Its unusual for me to scrounge ash with tight bark let alone living. I did see some with leaves on them this year. Some with the sprouts coming out of the trunk. Most were dead skeletons. A couple in my woods to come down. I like the ash tribute chopping block!
Downeast and in the county northern Maine haven't had EAB YET. It's coming. The traps are out hanging on trees. Basket makers use Brown Ash which needs wet feet for growth. White ash starts to rot fast with the takeover of spruce and fir along coastal woodlands. Very difficult to tell White from Brown Ash: bark, leaves, smell, location. The basket makers here know. I fell only solid, non rotten trees ( Paper Birch, Red Maple, some White Ash ), except for the rare standing dead oaks in our woodlot. It's the T.S.I. done following the Management Plan. Simply like managing a garden but on a 60a. woodlot. Diseased and rotten trees are saved for wildlife, not great for firewood anyhow.
Something I've always wondered, I would think some federal or local agency has seeds from ash trees and other trees/plants preserved to continue the species.
I checked with Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah IA and they seem to mostly have veggie plants and flowers. However, I do have a few Ash trees in my yard that I might just start saving the seed from. Our county has not had EAB yet.
I had let these 2 go because they were still green and producing seed. The bigger one had just a tad of dead wood where it snapped off and took the smaller one out. I have a small grove of young trees that seem to be doing ok and no sign of EAB on them.
So here are the two trees one completely infested the other not so much. and the third about 6 feet away.
Nice pics Warner. Snow too ! Older Ashes in mixed woods also have lower trunk rot which makes them possible prey for EAB. Hasn't hit here yet as said. Most of my Ashes here are over shadowed by spruce and fir growth; some starting to rot down low.
