Hemlock wooly adelgid.

“I went to Shining Rock Wilderness yesterday to test out my injured foot (to see how well I had healed). While there, I looked at some of the hemlocks to see if they had the adelgid. They do, to varying extents. Some heavy, some light.

Here's a photo I took of one that isn't yet terribly infested. But soon will be.

”

“damn those bugs.”

“I was hoping that the infestation that seem to be killing all the evergreen trees up in that area was on a downward trend. Guess not huh?”

“Hemlock wooly adelgid.”

“There are different forces working upon the various evergreens in th Sothen Apps.

The pine bark beetle is a native and comes and goes in cycles and the recent effects are very apparent on Linville Mountain

the aphids affecting the firs at high elevations may be native as well but are given a very competitive edge by the effects of acid rain which weakens the firs inspite of some politicians who state strongly otherwise

the hemlock problem has been recently disussed.”

“Where is this Bob?

We're having our own problem (in MI) with the Emerald Ash Borer. There are signs at all the campgrounds asking campers not to bring firewood from outside areas. There are even highway billboards warning about the potential problem caused by transporting wood to other locations.”

“Wow, I just looked up the Shinning Rock Wilderness and the page I visited said that it was named for the mountain from which Moses first viewed the Promised Land. Pretty interesting.

Also, I was wondering Bob, what do you do for a living, if you do not mind my asking. I mean, is your interest in trees professional or just a hobby? I was curious, is all.”

“The Shining Rock Wilderness is in 'Pisgah (the name of the mountain from which Moses viewed the Promised Land)' National Forest so named for Mount Pisgah and why it was named that, I do not know, which is located a few miles outside of and NE of the Shining Rock Wilderness Area.
last edited: 6/19/05 9:39:47 PM”

“To address those who don't know--the Hemlock wooly adelgid will probably end up killing all of our hemlock groves, including the huge old virgin groves that exist in our national parks. All of those groves in Shenandoah are now dead. If you want to see any while they're still living, I suggest you do so in the next couple of years--but don't bother trying to look in Shenandoah National Park (or,really, in Virginia)--go further south or west.

Mt. Pisgah has a name of Biblical origin. If you do a search of "Mt. Pisgah" on places like Topozone, you'll get a lot of hits in different states/locations. It's quite a common name used by christian settlers in North America. Just type in "Mt. Pisgah" at Topozone and watch what happens. Really a pedestrian and unimaginative name. The Mt. Pisgah not far from Shining Rock lies outside the wilderness area. It has a stinking radio tower on its otherwise beautiful summit.

No, I am not an arborist. Just interested in the man-made and human-caused dangers facing the forests into which we all hike and backpack. I am a letter carrier for USPS, and a writer.

Nonconformist: I took that photo along a fork of the West Pigeon River in the Shining Rock Wilderness here in NC. I'm always looking to see if I can find any groves of hemlocks here that are not yet infested with the adelgid. I have been unable to find any areas that aren't at least lightly affected. Which means that in a few years they'll be dead.”

“Thanks Bob. I have a plant pathologist in my family and I've got to run this one past him. Wonder if there's any of this up here?

Tx.”

“This adelgid is causing a hugh problem, I was at the Tallulah River trout fishing yesterday and more than half of the Hemlocks I checked were infested. Bob I think I read somewhere that there are some ladybugs or some type of insect that eats this larve. Does anyone have any information on this? I read this site reguarly but don't post much anymore, but this is a BIG problem.”

“I was talking to a Ranger on Mt LeConte Sat. He said there is a beetle that they are letting loose or will let loose soon that will eat the larva. Coming up the trail the amount of dead fir's is amazing and they are trying to stop it from happening to the hemlocks. I may have heard the ranger wrong but I thought he said what was killing the firs and hemlocks wasn't native to this country.”

“Its a shame this is happening-we have had some problems due to acid rain--”

“There is a program afoot to introduce an Asian beetle that feeds exclusively on the Hemlock wooly adelgid (this is why the adelgid is not a problem in the Asian forests from which it was introduced). They are breeding two types of this beetle, but as I have been told by experts, it is far too little, far too late.

A website concerning the introduction of this predatory beetle can be found here:

http://www.saveourhemlocks.org/

It all sounds good, but expert arborists (one of whom was hired to place colonies of the beetles in virgin hemlock groves in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park) have told me in no uncertain terms that our hemlock trees are all totally doomed.”

“Dayhiked today from Steppes Gap, over to Commissary Ridge, up to summit and back to car via Old Mitchell trail. I have been hiking up here for 25 years and have noticed many changes. In 1980 I remember looking at Mitchell from the parkway (while hiking with outward Bound) and seeing the summit completely black fro the dense evergreens (Hence one of Mt Mitchells old name, Black Dome) Fifteen year ago I saw the mountain covered with dead trees, like toothpicks sticking up. My impression now is I see fewer dead trees sticking up and a thick understory of young balsams. Alas these young trees are likely doomed by the adelgid, though my personal feeling is the massive die off of trees in the 1980's was due to the adelgid, acid rain, and normal aging. (The mountain was last logged in the early 1900's)”

“There appear to be fewer standing dead trees there now because a high percent of the large trees died and have now fallen and as well the entire mountain range was not logged in the early 1900's and the limits areas that were logged are still very apparent.

http://www.centerforplantconservation.org/ASP/CPC_ViewProfile.asp?CPCNum=3#Conservation”

“Until recently, the cost per predatory beetle was $1 per.

Considering the numbers needed, it is pretty easy to see how the funds were not there.

UT has opened a new labratory (with funding) to work on this problem. It is expected that the number of predatory beetles released will increase remakedly in the near future.”

“I am very excited to hear that you are interested in writing as well as ecology! I am currently working toward my BA in journalism with a minor in biology. I am also interested in environmental science and would like to write in that field.

Anyhow, it is nice to get to know you. :)”

“Just got back home from a week in the Standing Indian Basin. Good god, the wooly adelgid has just about wiped out the hemlocks over there. I saw entire groves of hemlocks all dead. I saw other groves that looked so sick there's no way they'll last two more years. I did encounter trees here and there as I hiked or bushwhacked that didn't seem to have any infestation at all--and other with only light infestation. I'd been told by an arborist up in Pennsylvania that he had seen similar things there--whole groves dead in one spot, but seemingly healthy trees standing nearby. Who knows the reason? At any rate, I will assume these other, healthy trees will soon succumb.”

“I have not noticed any problems with the hemlocks yet at my little 11 acre patch in Jonas Ridge, NC yet and it is predominantly canadian hemlock and allegheny (yellow) birch being a upland (extremely cold in winter) valley, 2 native speckled brook trout creeks at 3700' in elevation a couple miles above and to the right of Linville Falls. I reside about 30 miles from there.”

“My mother-in-law in Huntersville NC has two gorgeous Carolina hemlocks in her back yard that her husband planted about thirty years ago. They are both perfectly healthy, but are greatly separated from any other hemlocks by many miles. I'm keeping an eye out for any sign of HWA. If it does arrive, we'll treat the trees for it--they're both over 40 feet tall, so I assume we'll have to use the injected form of the aphicide.”

“NPR in Knoxville reported this morning that GSMNP is having success with Imidacloprid insecticide.

Apparently it is a synthetic nicotine that disrupts nerve synapsis.

Hopefully, I will be able to get more information on its usage.”

“That is indeed good news... last time I was Walnut Bottoms I met up with a Ranger or Forestry official and two helpers that were going thru the campsites and applying something tp the base of the trees infected.”

“Imidacloprid is applied as a ground based treatment.”

“Chili.. I posted another trip a week earlier than the north-south hike.”

“Hmmm, if nicotine does that to bugs, what does it do to humans???

Good news, in any event. Here kid, smoke this!”

“Thanks, QT. I will look at it.”

“Lol Geo, I use tobacco tea to kill bugs in my garden.”

“Borrowing a line from Jerry Clower:

Here bug, drink, and drink plenty of it!”