Pesticide shows early promise against ash borer
A Mich. St. Univ. study has yielded some exciting 1st-year results, including a new pesticide that appears to be almost 100% effective against emerald ash borer (EAB). Deborah McCullough, lead investigator on the project, said the team is trying not to get too excited based on 1 year's data. "The truth is, we don't know what to expect yet. But if you compare that 1 year's data to anything else we've done so far, it's looking pretty darn good," she told Flint Journal. The team tried various chemical treatments on trees infested with EAB, including an experimental pesticide called EB. Trees were treated in different ways, some sprayed and others injected. Researchers collected leaves from the treated trees and fed them to adult ash borers. The result: 100% mortality of adult beetles and 99.7% control of larvae.
W.Va. sets traps for EAB
Bright-purple traps meant to lure emerald ash borer (EAB) are being placed by West Virginia authorities this spring. At least 1,400 of the sticky traps — which some call Barney traps because they're similar in color to the singing dinosaur — will be put out statewide in April and May, ass't. dir. Sherri Hutchinson of the W.Va. Dept. of Ag.'s Plant Industries Division said. The EAB is attracted to purple and becomes trapped in the lure's sticky residue. After 3 or 4 months, ag. officials will analyze the traps to determine if ash borers have spread throughout West Virginia. So far the half-inch-long pests have only been found in about a half dozen trees in Fayette County, where a ban on the movement of ash trees out of the county was put in place last month.
Spring Garden buys Briggs Nursery
Wellesley, Mass.-based Spring Garden Group Inc. acquired Briggs Nursery Inc. in Elma, Wash. Briggs provides growers in the U. S. and internationally with tissue culture plantlets and supplies finished woody ornamentals primarily in the northwestern U. S. Briggs operates a tissue-culture laboratory constructed in 2006 and related facilities put in place over the past 4 years. "While Gary Briggs will be retiring from the business, we recognize and commend him for his foresight in building a business that has been in his family and successfully operated in the industry for 96 years," said Jack Hesse, Spring Garden president.
New Jersey gets behind plastic recycling
N.J. Secretary of Ag. Charles M. Kuperus and the N.J. Nursery and Landscape Assoc. teamed up at Johnson Farms in Deerfield to encourage ag. operations to recycle plastics. "Recycling agricultural plastics is an important component to the overall sustainability of New Jersey's agriculture industry, both economically and environmentally," Kuperus said. N.J. Dept. of Ag. has facilitated a year-round nursery and greenhouse film collection and recycling program since 1997. In 2007, 715,000 pounds of film was recycled by Garden State growers, resulting in growers saving almost $15,000 in landfill tipping fees. Since the program began, growers have recycled more than 5.5 million pounds of film.
Hortanswers Web site serves Zones 4-6
A new Web site that allows home gardeners and professional horticulturists to gain information about plant pests, diseases, and performance in USDA Hardiness Zones 4, 5 and 6 has been launched by Univ. of Ill. Extension. Hortanswers is designed to provide basic information about the disease and pest problems of plants plus determine the right plant for the right place in the garden, said Greg Stack, Extension horticulture educator and one of the designers of the site.
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