Hope for Ash in beneficial insect

"Three species of wasps collected from ash trees in China have the potential to save ash trees in North America.

In mid-June, Purdue University researchers, armed with permits from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal Plant Health Inspection Service, began to release 200 of the first wasp species in an ash forest near Rousch Lake in Huntington.

These wasps lay their eggs into the eggs of emerald ash borers. As the wasps feed, grow and develop, they eventually kill the ash borer eggs."

"While researchers are optimistic about the study, Cliff Sadof, Purdue professor of entomology, said any control benefits could be a few years away."

Full Article

Planting trees at your playspace

Trees and landscaping are often considered “extras,” and are first on the budget chopping block, but here are some reasons to reconsider trees as critical to your playspace:
•Incidences of childhood asthma are lower in neighborhoods where there are more trees.
•Incidences of childhood melanoma are lower in children who have less direct exposure to UV rays.

Trees are an investment: take good care of them and you'll reap the benefits. Here are some critical rules for how you can invest in the safety and health of our communities:
•Plant the right trees in the right places: Use native trees.
•Care for your trees.
•Protect your trees.

Read the full articles,
Trees on the playground = healthier kids &
Planting trees at your playspace: Technical considerations.

For more information on the benefits of trees on urban spaces see our Street Smart Articles

Green Tech - September Report

Oak Wilt Wisdom

Oak Wilt is a fungus inhibiting all the conducting tissues in the oak tree. It is fairly easy to spot as the leaves can drop mid summer over just a matter of weeks.

As it is with any insect or disease, if we take care to observe the tree in its vigorous form, we will notice when something doesn’t look right. The best treatment in the landscape is to minimize stress and maintain tree health with attention to watering, mulching, fertilizing and avoidance of root compaction. The best treatment in natural areas is to monitor disease when it moves in, and try to prevent its spread to nearby healthy trees. The fungus moves from tree to tree by way of root grafts and insect vectors.

The other two most important tips about oak wilt are:
1. Observe the rule of green thumb to limit pruning oaks only when dormant (no pruning March through October). Cuts during the growing season expose sap literally calling the fungus-transporting insects.
2. When you suspect oak wilt has moved in, consult your state extension or an arborist for advise on the best approach to sever root grafts to protect healthy trees.

Good links:
http://www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/howtos/ht_oakwilt/toc.htm#summary
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3306.html

-Mary T. McClelland- GreenTech

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Chicago Unveils Multifaceted Plan to Curb Emissions of Heat-Trapping Gases

Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago on Thursday unveiled perhaps the most aggressive plan of any major American city to reduce heat-trapping gases.

The blueprint would change the city’s building codes to promote energy efficiency. It also calls for installing huge solar panels at municipal properties and building alternative fueling stations.

Ron Burke, a director with the Union of Concerned Scientists, which helped shape the plan, said it was “more robust and quantitative than those in any other city.”

Like hundreds of other cities, Chicago has pledged by 2020 to reduce the emissions of heat-trapping gases 25 percent from the levels in 1990, the baseline established by the Kyoto Protocol, an international climate treaty. Mr. Burke said the Chicago plan offered much more specific ways than other cities’ plans to measure and cut the emissions.

The mayor, who called the plan a “model for the rest of the nation,” has already won praise among environmentalists for a program that promotes rooftop gardens to conserve energy.

Full article - NYTimes.com