For the City Times

With the recent find of the Emerald ash borer (EAB) in Stevens Point, the city’s forestry personnel have begun to treat a number of ash trees in the downtown area.

The city encourages residents, whom have an ash tree on private property which they would like to protect, to begin looking into having the trees treated.

Residents with trees smaller than 12-inches in diameter can successfully treat their own tree with products bought at home and garden centers. Products such as Ortho Bug B Gone Year Long Tree and Shrub Insect Control or Bayer.

Advanced tree and shrub protection are examples of insecticides labeled to control EAB. The active ingredient is imidicloprid. Residents are encouraged to follow the directions. A demonstration video of using one of these products can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLEVxteP7OQ.

Residents with trees larger than 12-inches in diameter should contact an arborist to have their ash tree treated.

There are other insecticides that are effective to protect larger ash trees which require special training and certification to apply. It is advised to get a couple estimates.

Ash trees left untreated in the city will be infested to some degree within five years, and will begin to die off in large numbers with in ten years. For more information regarding EAB, please see our website at stevenspoint.com/eab.