Tree-Azin = Neem Based Product registered in Ontario for Trees (not a very effective product compared to (banned) Imidacloprid or Tree-Age)
Tree-Age = Emamectin benzoate. (referenced in Milwaukee (Wisconsin) University Extensions for EAB usage.
2.8 Million Dollar a Year investment for 10-15 years, using a product that is hit and miss.
If you are going to drill all kinds of holes in trees, why not use the stuff that works???? Ontario Pesticide Ban, Dalton McGuinty, John Gerretsen, Liberal Government
John McNeil, manager of forestry services Oakville Ontario:
The videos also explain the treatment process — injecting the tree biannually with TreeAzin,a pesticide developed by BioForest Technologies and the Canadian Forest Service. The treatment doesn’t cure an infected tree, but if repeated every two years, it can stave off death.
A series of interactive maps on the town’s website make it easy to find the 80 per cent ofsalvageable trees growing on private property.
The town mapped its ash trees through hyperspectral analysis — a process that involvedflying over Oakville with a specialized camera capable of detecting ash trees. The mapsmake it easy for residents to see whether they live in an area with ash trees. Trees aretagged with a GIS system so residents can see whether their favourite ash tree is beingtreated, as well as the height and diameter of the tree.
It’s not a cheap investment, said McNeil. The hyperspectral mapping cost around $175,000.A report to Oakville Town Council estimates the cost to save the ash trees will be about$2.8 million a year for the next six years, with ongoing expenses to last for 10 to 15 years.
Treatment is an approach McNeil took from Milwaukee, which he says is being scientificand innovative in its approach to dealing with the pest.
The Wisconsin city is treating 100per cent of its 28,000 trees.
He is also taking a leaf from Milwaukee’s communication strategy, which uses social media,advertising and radio broadcasts.
Oakville EAB Video 1 & 2:
http://www.oakville.ca/eab.htm
University of Wisconsin
Professional Guide to Emerald Ash Borer Insecticide Treatments
R. Chris Williamson, UW Entomology (no mention of Tree-Azin)
Purdue University EAB Fact Sheet: (No mention of Tree-Azin)
Table 1 Labeled pesticides and application time for homeowners and professionals
http://extension.entm.purdue.edu/EAB/index.php?page=faq
BioForest Technologies Inc. Offers Tree-Azin to Ontario Residents but SafeLawns Foundation Treasurer and CEO of Arborjet Peter Wild sells Tree-Age to Wisconsin, go figure.
Tree-Age:
City of Burlington, Ontario talks about Tree-Azin:
It is important to emphasize the current uncertainty of a TreeAzin treatment program. The effectiveness of TreeAzin is
not fully proven and injection-based treatments compromise tree health in other ways. As a result, there is no guarantee
that treated trees will remain protected from EAB, or that the treatment itself will not compromise tree health.
Cincinnati Enquirer Article: Your Ash Trees Can Be Saved
As most of you know I am quite passionate about saving ash trees. There have been so many gloom and doom articles about the emerald ash borer in Cincinnati that I decided to write to the Enquirer. And the Cincinnati Enquirer decided to publish it. Here is the article and please read it. Any comments are welcome.
Your ash trees are not doomed to die
June 9, 2010
It is commonly known that the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) kills ash trees. There is a misconception that there’s no completely effective treatment and eventually the tree must be taken down. This is completely false!
In a recent article, “Emerald Ash Borer Population Growing,” Paul Drury, assistant administrator of Anderson Township, did a great job of describing the problem. However, he concluded his article with a defeatist attitude that revealed a lack of knowledge. Just like Mariemont, and many other municipalities, individuals are not up with current research or are mislead.
Many draw their conclusions from a June 2007 paper, The Potential Economic Impacts of Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) on Ohio, U.S., Communities by Sydnor, Bumgardner and Todd, that was constructed improperly focusing only on removing ash trees. In this paper, the word “save” does not appear one time. The focus is on rip and replace and not saving valuable trees. Today, the authors are rewriting the paper.
In 2009, after another two-year study, the solution to the EAB was revealed and published in Options for Protecting Ash Trees from Emerald Ash Borer. In that report scientists from these universities, Ohio State, Purdue, Michigan State, Wisconsin and Illinois, identified the most effective treatment.
“A new product that is effective for two years or even longer (emamectin benzoate) has altered the economics of treating ash trees… emamectin benzoate is the only product tested to date that controls EAB for more than one year with a single application.”
In a study since 2006, Daniel Herms, PhD, Department of Entomology, the Ohio State University, stated “A single trunk injection of emamectin benzoate (TREE-äge) provided up to three years control,” Multiyear Evaluations of Systemic Insecticides for Control of Emerald Ash Borer. In another paper Herms stated, “The emamectin benzoate trees had less than one larva per square meter or greater than 99 percent control.”
Some argue that removal and replacement is more cost effective than treatment. However, this too is a misconception based on old data. Removing a 12.4-inch tree will lose a landscape value of $2,240, cost an additional $675 for tree and stump removal, and $290 for a replacement 2.4-inch tree.
In contrast, that same 12.4-inch tree could be treated with TREE-äge for only $149, a three-year protection, and less than half that price for municipal parks and streets.
So there you have it. Your trees can be saved by this treatment, proven effective by multiple university studies. I’ve personally saved more than 3,000 trees, and it should be 30,000. The treatment is there, decision makers just need to wake up and use it.
I encourage you to go to your park boards and city councils to ask your leaders why – why aren’t you treating the ash trees with this innovative treatment? It’s time to fight to save the beautiful ash trees.
Tim Back, an International Society of Arboriculture certified arborist since 1997 and owner of Back Tree Service, 742-8733, has saved ash trees for years. Visit his blog on saving ash trees in Cincinnati, www.emeraldashborer.wordpress.com.