The emerald ash borer started killing ash trees in my area back in 2010. Most of my 350 some, large ash trees started dying back between 2012 and 2014. I cut about 150 large ash trees down. Most of the large ash trees have been dead for over 6 years. A small number of large ash trees are still alive, but most of them look to be in poor shape. When they were dying, the large ash trees put out huge numbers of seeds and I have probably thousands of young ash trees, some of which are getting pretty good sized.

The large ash trees I didn't cut down have been falling down making a huge mess. I will have several days work clearing out my hayfields of dead ash trees that have fallen in. Parts of my woods are littered with dead ash trees making them nearly impassable. Around half of the ash trees I cut down have had ugly, brushy growth sprout from around the stumps.

Is there any future for those young ash trees?

I wonder if it's just best to cut them down and poison the stumps before they are big enough to die and make a huge new mess?

Keith

I read that there is some hope that the few survivors may have some sort of genetic resistance.

But if so that won't play out until several generations have had the chance to germinate, grow and die.

Hit mine hard . The brutal winds this year I have 26 big ash broken off since March first . Thinking about going into firewood business. Lol

Warrior I have heard of the immunity scenario and that has me keeping an eye on a 24 inch I have in my tiny woods. I would say between 90 -99% of ash trees over 12 inches have died in my area. But this one is showing almost no sign of illness even though several others around within 100 yards of it have died.

Kieth, I would let the coppice grow. At the worst you would end up with some smaller rounds for firewood. Might even get some larger saw bolts.

I have several elms now. Duch elm wiped them all out a few decades ago. I'm hoping ash come back as well.
A friend told me the ash bore moved into some other species and was a large reasion he loved his place. I have not heard that anywhere else yet though.

All my ash got hit by the borers and this yr I saw a few ash saplings.......So I guess theres hope!

Ours got hammmerd too, shame it's one of my favorite woods & alot of our furniture is ash. This time of the year be mindful of setting up under them in the dark & other dead falls while turkey hunting. Hopefully it doesn't go the way of chestnuts and can recover for the future generations.

all my ash tree, died big and small, all the tree, green, black, white, and worst the mountain ash, all died, and the elm trees that somehow made it thru, the 70s, die off have all die in the last few years,

had 3 huge ash in my yard took them down last year have not seen saplings in our woodlots I will take a closer look.

Most of the ash in my woods have been killed by the ash borers. I'm having the larger ones milled into lumber. It is similar to oak in grain and texture.



I have noticed that now that nearly all the ash are dead the poplars are dying. I suspect the borers have attacked them.

I bought a logosol sawmill and cut them into lumber. Beautiful wood and not wasted.

They are here too. Crazy how fast they can decimate the population of a very specific tree.
That zig-zaggy curly cue pattern they leave under the bark is interesting sign of an infestation.
Been Don do and around ash trees my whole life here. Great hardwood that does well in our climate here. Awesome shade tree, burn well in a stove, nice clean straight grain for good splitting.
Hope they come back some day after this little borer does its devil work.
Jim

I have seen ash trees in Denver with ribbons around them saying “I am a smart ash”. They were inoculated to make them resistant. The city inoculated ash trees growing between their sidewalks and curbing.

It's been over a decade since I went through an arborist class in order to do tree work in Evansville but I thought they said you could treat for them by injecting something in the tree. BUT it had to be done over mutipal years becuse of the insects life cycle. The guy gave the impression it was pointless becust they would likely be infected again and all the hole drilled to treat them was not good on the tree either.

But it's been a long time ago and I may be thinking about a different pest possibly those wasp that make oaks have those balls on them.. actually now I think about it I believe that was the pest not the ash bore

When we had our first infestation in ash there was a seminar about the beetle and it's life cycle.3+ years ago
Taking the overhead canopy away lots of new ash sprout... but... the adult beetles feed on the seedling that are 3 years old and girdle them
beetles traveled here probably by train movement
one of the way that they were doing to sea containers was to blow in wood chips to use as padding vs popcorn styrofoam and that is how they go over here.to NA, massive piles of chips in some shipping yards the green traps would catch 100's

I have a boiler so it’s not a bad thing for me. J/K We are still clearing the dying elms here they must of been the trees to plant back in the day some areas are impacted my the ash borer, the East end we hear about a lot.

all ash trees here are dead

I could easily be wrong but since it is a bug and not a disease I don't believe there is any resistance to build up.

From everything I've heard the only thing building resistance is ash borer to the cold. The ash are gone unless they somehow erridiacte the bugs or create a GMO ash tree or something.