Boston Flora

Tag: emerald ash borer

  • Thursday, November 15, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm – Trees in the Urban Landscape Symposium

    Urban tree professionals, tree wardens, persons working in the tree care industry, and anyone interested in learning more about the urban forest are invited to attend the 15th Annual Trees in the Urban Landscape Symposium, to take place Thursday, November 15, from 9 – 3 at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, 11 French Drive in Boylston, MA.

    Symposium Schedule

    9-9:30am Registration; Coffee and pastries

    9:30-9:45am Welcome and Announcements

    Morning Session

    9:45-10:45am State of the Nation’s Urban Forests
    Richard Harper, Extension Assistant Professor of Urban & Community Forestry – University of Massachusetts

    11am-Noon Looking at Community Tree Inventories: Purpose, Tools and Process
    David V. Bloniarz, Ph.D., Project Director, USDA Forest Service Urban Natural Resources Institute – Amherst, MA

    Lunch Break

    Noon-1pm

    Afternoon Session

    1-1:50pm Emerald Ash Borer and other Forest Health Concerns
    Ken Gooch, DCR Forest Health Program Supervisor

    2-3pm Fruit Trees in the Urban Landscape
    Benjamin Crouch, Proprietor, Land of Plenty

    CEU’s pending

    Sponsored by Tower Hill Botanic Garden and the Nathaniel Wheeler Trust, Bank of America, Trustee. Visit www.towerhillbg.org to register. Fee is $10, and a reserved box lunch is an additional $10.

  • Tuesday, October 16, and Wednesday, October 17 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm – Emerald Ash Borer in Massachusetts

    At meetings to be held Tuesday and Wednesday, October 16 and 17, from 6:30 – 8:30, the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and Department of Agricultural Resources (DAR), the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and the USDA’s Forest Service will address the implications surrounding the recent discovery of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) in western Massachusetts. Tuesday’s meeting will take place at the Berkshire Atheneum, One Wendell Avenue in Pittsfield, and Wednesday’s meeting will be held at the Visitors Center Theater of Old Sturbridge Village, 1 Old Sturbridge Village Road in Sturbridge.

    Central to these meetings is the issue of establishing a quarantine boundary within the state that would restrict the movement of certain wood products under certain conditions. Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in a question-and-answer session, and general feedback will be elicited to help guide the state’s actions as it moves forward with responding to the discovery of this destructive pest.

    If you have questions about the public meeting, please call 617-626-4974 or email DCR.Updates@state.ma.us.

  • Thursday, August 2, 7:00 pm – Biological Control of Invasive Pests in New England Landscapes

    Our forests, landscapes, and gardens seem to be constantly assaulted by new invasive weed and insect pests. Lily leaf beetle, winter moth, Japanese knotweed, hemlock woolly adelgid, garlic mustard, mile-a-minute vine, and even kudzu are already well-established in southern New England and the emerald ash borer has its sights on us. Ironically, in many cases, the best opportunity to manage these pests involves introducing additional non-native species – generally insects – that regulated them in their native homeland. Dick Casagrande of the University of Rhode Island will speak at Elm Bank on Thursday, August 2, beginning at 7 pm, on the Biological Control of these invasive pests.

    Dr. Casagrande will discuss current programs, opportunities and limitations for biological control of landscape pests of particular importance in our region. He will also answer questions and offer practical advice to homeowners interested in controlling (or enhancing) insects in their homes and yards.  The lecture fee is $12 for Mass Hort members, $15 for non members, and pre-registration is not required.  For more information, visit www.masshort.org.

  • Tuesday, July 12, 1:30 pm – 4:00 pm – New England Trees in Decline: The Science Behind the Story

    David Orwig, Forest Ecologist at Harvard Forest, will speak in the Hunnewell Building of the Arnold Arboretum on Tuesday, July 12, from 1:30 – 4 pm, on the topic of New England Trees in Decline: The Science Behind the Story. Since 1907, research has been underway at the 3,000-acre property of Harvard Forest, one of the oldest and most intensively studied forests in North America. Scientists, students, and collaborators at the Forest explore topics ranging from conservation and environmental change to land-use history and the ways in which physical, biological, and human systems interact to change our earth. Join Dr. Orwig for this special opportunity to learn about tree decline in New England and to explore ways to reduce and avoid further problems. Dr. Orwig will present information that details ongoing tree decline resulting from a variety of stressors including native and exotic pests and pathogens. Conifer species will be highlighted, but ongoing hardwood tree problems will be included as well. An emphasis will be given to identification of the problem, the mode of tree decline, and appropriate treatment options when applicable. Discussion will include pests such as hemlock woolly adelgid, elongate hemlock scale, red pine scale, Sirex wood wasp, spruce diseases, emerald ash borer, Asian long-horned beetle, and oak decline on Martha’s Vineyard.  Note New Date: Postponed from April 5.
    Fee $20 Ecological Landscape Association and Arnold Arboretum members, $25 nonmember.  Co-sponsored by the Ecological Landscape Association and the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University.  Register online at https://my.arboretum.harvard.edu or by phone at 617-384-5277.