In the spirit of intergovernmental cooperation, Create the Vision has partnered with the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) to promote Ohio’s Emerald Ash Borer Detection Tree Program. At a recent Create the Vision meeting, Aimee Hartke of Out On A Limb Tree Service updated members about the state’s efforts to contain and eliminate the Emerald Ash Borer. “This pest is an exotic insect from Asia that has killed millions of native ash trees in Michigan and parts of northwest Ohio,” said Hartke. “The entire state of Michigan and parts of northwestern Ohio are currently under quarantine.”

“The Emerald Ash Borer is a death sentence for ash trees, killing them within three to five years of infestation. The larvae feed on the cambium layer, the tree’s live tissue just beneath the bark. This cuts off the tree’s nutrients and water and essentially starves the tree to death. Larvae overwinter beneath the bark and can be inadvertently transported via firewood, logs or nursery stock – the sources of most of Ohio’s infestations,” said Hartke.

In an effort to contain and eliminate the Emerald Ash Borer, the ODA has expanded the use of detection trees to aid in survey measures. Detection trees, which only attract insects already in the area, are useful tools in monitoring and detection of the pest. Ideal detection trees are ash trees four to eight inches in diameter that are wounded by girdling. Girdling is conducted in the spring by cutting a strip of bark approximately 12 inches wide around the tree, which causes the tree to release natural stress signals that are innately attractive to insects. In the fall, the detection trees are cut down and their bark removed in search of Emerald Ash Borer larvae living just beneath the bark. Detection trees and visual survey currently are the best available detection tools for the Emerald Ash Borer. The state of Ohio plans to establish more than 15,000 detection trees across the state.

Citizens can assist in Emerald Ash detection and education by donating one or more ash trees on their property. Those interested in participating in the detection tree program should contact the Ohio Department of Agriculture at 1-888-OHIO-EAB or go to www.ohioagriculture.gov/eab.

Create the Vision is the Comprehensive Plan to guide development in the City of Centerville and Washington Township for the next 20 years. “Create the Vision recently won a state-wide award from Ohio City/County Management Association for Excellence in Intergovernmental Cooperation,” said Angie Tapogna, Create the Vision Project Manager. “Partnering with the Department of Agriculture to promote their Detection Tree Program is another example of that.”

Create the Vision’s guidelines contain two strategies regarding tree preservation:
• Enhance regulations that require dedication of significant tree stands and adequate open space as an ongoing strategy.
• A long-term strategy calls for preserving and enhancing significant tree cover in the community through an urban forestry program.

“Trees are important to this community,” said Tapogna. “And one in ten trees in Ohio is an Ash Tree.” The City of Centerville has a tree preservation policy and for the past 20 years has been recognized by the National Arbor Day Foundation as a Tree City USA. Centerville also employs a full-time horticulturist to assist with tree preservation. Washington Township has begun to develop a formal tree preservation policy; and contracts with a horticulture consultant to assist with tree preservation as well.