What significance does the Pine Bark beetle outbreak hold for the city of Boulder and surrounding communities?We have been fielding particular questions such as this on a regular basis for some time now.
With the recent developments and tree devastation left behind in the foothills and mountains by these destructive beetles, who do we turn to for answers and where lies the guarantee that our own properties will remain untouched if we just take the correct action.Regardless of the experts we listen to, one conclusion remains common to just about all of them.The healthier our trees are, the less susceptible they will be to the beetles as they inch their way closer and closer to our homes and properties in the city.
The primary targets of pine bark beetle to date, regardless of geographic location, are over infested, weakened and dying growths of lodgepole pines, but there is already evidence that the beetles are now jumping species to our ponderosa pines and even our beautiful spruce trees.As noted in a past article written by Felicia Russell for Boulder Magazine’s winter and spring edition for 2007-2008, the opinion of U.S. Forest Service entomologist Sheryl Costello is alarming at best.
Researchers in Oregon have seen evidence of infestations switching from one species to another. “I think we’re all very concerned about ponderosa pine,” Costello says. In the autumn of 2007, Costello visited Rocky Mountain National Park to see if Colorado’s mountain pine beetles, like the Oregon insects, have jumped between tree species. To her dismay, she found the insects burrowed beneath the bark of lodgepole, ponderosa and spruce trees. While this does not necessarily mean that the beetles will begin a massive attack on ponderosa pine, “it’s a little bit disheartening,” Costello says.“They may make the jump to ponderosa pine, and if they do, they will work their way all the way down to the plains,” says Boulder County’s Julian. “That could be a catastrophe in my mind because we’re going to lose the large trees we have left down low. The only thing we can do at this point to protect the lower montane at least is to continue with forest restoration. We have a window of a few years to do so.”
We have proven now for almost 20 years in the Boulder area that a healthy tree is far less attractive and susceptible to insects and disease than one that lacks proper nutrition, is periodically dehydrated, and routinely neglected because of our demanding schedules.We spend approximately eight months out of every year working nutritionally with client’s properties. Many property owners have found protecting the health of their properties does not have to be cost prohibitive.
If you have concerns about the health and resistance of your trees, we would love to hear from you.
