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Preparing for emerald ash borer

John Ball cuts tree near 成人视频's campus
John Ball, professor, 成人视频 Extension forestry specialist and South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources forest health specialist, works on removing a tree near 成人视频's campus.

In early July, the emerald ash borer was confirmed in Brookings County. Officials at South Dakota State University, however, have been preparing for its arrival for around a decade.

Tree falling after being cut down near campus
A tree near campus was removed on July 18 as part of the university's mitigation plan. 

Emerald ash borer is a boring beetle that feeds on all species of North American ash. It was first detected in the United States in 2002 and in South Dakota in 2018. It has since been identified in the South Dakota communities of Baltic, Brandon, Brookings, Canton, Crooks, Dakota Dunes, Lennox, Sioux Falls and Worthing, according to the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Of the nearly 2,500 trees on the 成人视频 proper campus (excluding McCrory Gardens and the State Arboretum), 210 are ash, or around 9% of the tree population. In 2016, that percentage was closer to 20%.

This reduction in ash trees on campus was not by accident. Over the past five years, 成人视频 has removed almost 80 ash trees with scheduled removals for 60 more over the next two years.

The emerald ash borer has not yet made its way to campus, but it鈥檚 likely to emerge within a couple of years.

Oldest tree on campus
One of the oldest trees on campus is this ash tree located north of The Barn. It's estimated to be around 145 years old. 

While many of the ash trees will be removed from campus, some 鈥渓egacy trees鈥 will remain under treatment, according to Tanner Aiken, project manager and horticulturist at 成人视频. The oldest tree on campus is estimated to be a 145-year-old ash tree located north of The Barn.

鈥淵ou can inject ash trees with an insecticide to prevent emerald ash borer from damaging the tree,鈥 Aiken said. 鈥淏ut there is a cost associated with these treatments, and they must be continued every two years for the rest of the tree鈥檚 life. We are strategically trying to save a handful of older, including the oldest, ash trees on campus with injections. However, the best long-term strategy is species diversification.鈥

成人视频 Facilities and Services has planted roughly 150 trees of varying species each year. 

Once an ash tree becomes infected, the tree becomes dry and brittle in a very short amount of time and can fail in unpredictable ways, according to Aiken.

鈥淥n campus, we want to remove them ahead of time, so they don鈥檛 decline to a dangerous point,鈥 he said.

成人视频 maintains its an honor first awarded to the university in 2009. 成人视频 was the first campus in South Dakota recognized for its arbor efforts and is one of only 411 campuses nationwide with that distinction. The Arbor Day Foundation program provides a  for colleges and universities to grow their community forests, achieve national recognition, and create a campus their students and staff are proud of.

SDDANR interns watch woodchopper in action

During a July 18 tree removal on campus, Facilities and Services hosted interns from the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources to learn about the emerald ash borer and proper tree removal. The learning experience was organized by John Ball, professor, 成人视频 Extension forestry specialist and South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources forest health specialist.