Use the right chemical

Dear Editor,

This may tie in with your recent editorial about re-treeing Nebraska.

We also need to take care of what we already have. We have so few trees that really thrive in our region, and ash is one that has been overplanted, only because they generally perform well. The drawback to ash is that they can be attacked by borers when they are young and, if uncontrolled (spray) the borers can be responsible for extensive secondary damage.

Enter the chemical Imidacloprid. It is the latest silver bullet in the nursery industry for systemic control of insects.

It is a very effective tool; however, it provides absolutely no protection for our ash trees against the borers that can decimate them.

Even though the label may say "controls ash borer," at issue here is the fact that it's not ash borer that does the damage; it is rather lilac and peach tree borer.

Lilac and peach tree borers are in the Lepidoptera family, which is not affected by imidacloprid, even if you gave them a bath in the stuff. These borers become moths when they reach the adult stage.

Other borers such as ash borer or bronze birch borer, are in the Coleoptera family, and imidacloprid is very effective against these and a host of other chewing and sucking insects. Borers in the Coleoptera family become beetles.

The product is good when used properly and when you actually know what the pest is that you are trying to kill.

Hopefully, this will keep people from wasting money on a product that simply won't do what they want it to.

Thank you,

Bruce Hoffman,

ISA and NAA

certified arborist

McCook